RAF Museum London
Kerry Culbert inspects the newly refurbished hangers of the RAF Museum and discovers the evolution of the service over the past 100 years
Kerry Culbert takes a trip to the newly refurbished hangars of the RAF’s museum in North London.
The new RAF Museum stands on the site of the former Hendon Aerodrome which was the birthplace of aviation in the UK. The land was purchased in 1910 to operate as an airfield and Claude-Grahame White, an aviation pioneer, took it over in 1911. He ran Britain’s first airmail point, installing a factory there to build his plane designs. It was the first parachute jump spot and the first aerial defence of a city took place here as well. WWI aircraft were produced in the factory and later, in 1926, it became RAF Hendon, home to the volunteer Auxiliary Air Force. The first Squadron was 604 and three of the original buildings from 1929-32 still stand today. Later, RAF Hendon provided a key role in the Battle of Britain. When the doors to the original Museum opened in 1972, it was to tell the story of the world’s first independent air force, the RAF.
The Museum is in Collingwood and is easily accessible by car, less so by public transport. It’s a 303 bus ride from the Edgware Branch of the Northern Line tube and quite a walk if you have limited mobility. Especially as the first entrance you come to, next to a police station, is locked due to Covid. So, both those on foot and cars enter at the main car park entrance by a Spitfire. It isn’t clear but foot traffic can take a short cut round the side of the car park, rather than walking through it. There are plenty of complimentary wheelchairs on site and with flat grounds and hangers it’s easy to manoeuvre for pushchairs or wheelchairs.
There’s a lot to see, I spent two hours alone in Hanger 1 which is situated by the entrance. Covering 1918 to
2018 this hanger defines the RAF and its operations. Formed in 1918, as the first independent air service, it was a merger of The Royal Flying Corps and The Royal Naval Air Service. A wide range of uniforms are on display from both of them. A guide pointed out the various engines and said it was primarily designed with families in mind. To be honest I found it more like a recruitment and fundraising hanger, with cut-outs of former serving personnel and children’s plane models to try out while the adults read the many information boards and attempted skills tests. Interactive touch screens with radio like ear pieces to hear the ethics of bombing or policing the skies etc are in all six hangers. The future seemed to be an emphasis on using pilotless drones.
H2 is more interesting. It’s the factory building and an original structure from 1915 which houses WWI planes and collectables. It was repositioned in 2003 to make room for more material. Two Belfast Truss Hangers form H3 and H4 are where the older plane collections mostly stand. For those interested in collecting militaria from the air services, hangers 2, 3, 4 and 5 are the ones to concentrate on. Hangar 6 is more about modern warfare.
Despite being an RAF museum, it’s not just Allied planes and collectables. There are interesting items such as the 1916 blue glass mascot that belonged to Baron von Richthofen, the Red Baron as he is more commonly known. The Germans made their pilots into idols to boost morale, unlike the more modest British. Lucky charms and mascots were as important to pilots as they were to sailors as they filled many of the cabinets.
The British pilots are covered of course, with many items from those who fought in the Battle of Britain. The Dambuster section is another interesting and popular area. There’s a lot more than planes in the hangers. Plus there are many items civilians would not usually see such as flight refuelling charts and notebooks or early intelligence cameras used before the age of digital. You really get a feel for the RAF and the innovations that it has developed.
The photographic side is well covered, with many cameras on display, including long focal length lenses for more detailed images from the air. This is backed up with personal stories, such as Flight Officer Constance Babington Smith
MBE who was known for her work in imagery intelligence during WWII.
The museum is dotted with personnel back through time and is careful to be inclusive in terms of gender and race.
The collectables on show always have a supporting story behind them, which enhances knowledge of the RAF.
On to Hanger 5 which is worth an hour all on its own. It’s the Bomber
Hall featuring a Lancaster, Vulcan and Blenheim. The site also includes the only complete Hawker Typhoon and the only Boulton Paul Defiant in the world. Other planes to look out for are a Fokker DV11, Sopwith Camel and Vickers F.B 5 Gunbus in Hangar 2; a Curtiss Kitty Hawk and Messerschmitt Bf109 in Hangars 3 and 4; and in Hangar 6 you can walk inside a Chinook Helicopter. There are also optional tours inside some of the other aircraft.
To round things off there’s a display of Squadron shields and after a day at the Museum you will come away with a deeper understanding of the role of the RAF today.
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