Description of the attraction
The Canadian Air and Space Museum is an entertaining museum of Canadian aviation history in Ottawa. The museum is run by Canada Science and Technology Museum Corporation.
In 1964, the National Aviation Collection was formed at the Rockcliffe base of the Royal Canadian Air Force. In fact, it was a merger of already three existing collections - the collection of the National Aviation Museum at Uplands Air Force Base (specializing in early aviation), the collection of the Canadian War Museum (mainly military aircraft, including captured ones) and the collection of the Museum of the Royal Canadian Air Force. In 1982, the collection received the status of the National Aviation Museum.
Over time, the collection of the museum was significantly replenished and in 1988 it moved to a new spacious hangar, and in 2006, in order to accommodate all the available exhibits in proper conditions, another hangar was opened. In 2009-2010, a large-scale reconstruction of the museum was carried out, which made it possible to expand its area by 2,600 square meters and add a new foyer, conference room, cafeteria, classrooms, etc. In 2010, the museum got its current name.
The Canadian Air and Space Museum owns an extensive collection of both civil and military aviation, which perfectly illustrates the history of Canadian aviation. The most valuable and famous exhibit of the museum is the Avro CF-105 Arrow fighter-interceptor, or rather its nose. Of particular interest are the old "bushplanes" dating back to 20-40s and the remote manipulator of the shuttle Endeavor. However, exhibits such as the Zenair CH 300 Tri Zenith C-GOVK, on which Red Morris made a record non-stop flight across Canada in 1978, the Bensen B-8, the Canadair CL-84 Dynavert prototype, the original single-seater Rutan Quickie with an engine, are no less interesting. The 18hp Orion, the Stitts SA-3A Playboy CF-RAD hobby aircraft, the PW120 turboprop and more.
