I quite like World War II. But obviously I say that as someone who has never fought a fight in his life. The closest I’ve ever come to fighting in a battle is watching Rambo on the telly. But if you remember the days when pilots all had moustaches and names like Rupert, Hubert and Hugh then you’re going to absolutely love this place.
The first hangar has a Hawker Hart, Harrier Jumpjet and Eurofighter Typhoon hanging from the roof. You can walk around them 360 degrees and view them from different heights but you’re not allowed inside them. You can’t sit in them – all they do is hang there like an iron chandelier. They’re the aeronautical equivalent of a stuffed animal. I think they’ve missed a trick because imagine how much money they could make if they let us fire up the engines and let loose a live missile! They could charge 20p a go – they’d make a fortune.
Royal Air Force planes from World War II
The next hangar is full of World War II equipment and it wasn’t until I stepped inside that I realised how vast this place is. This is not a piddly little museum we’re talking about here – it’s huge. They’ve got more planes than an airport. Highlights include a Spitfire (of course), a Messerschmitt (that’s probably not how you spell it), a Focke Wulk, Flying Fortress, and the rusting hulk of a Halifax bomber that was dredged up from the bottom of a Norwegian lake.
Avro Lancaster bomber
Halfway through the hangar you come to the absolute beauty of beauties: an Avro Lancaster that looks as good as new. Unfortunately they don’t let you climb inside the cockpit anymore because they used luminous paint to brighten the dials and it’s faintly radioactive (no joke!). So health and safety have achieved what the Luftwaffe couldn’t and grounded the fleet.
Next-door to that is a huge nuclear-carrying Vulcan suspended ten feet from the floor with the bomb bay open, so you can walk underneath and see inside. That thing is a beast. They’ve got a little video of it taking-off and the noise is wrecking the sky (and my eardrums).
Guided tour of the airplane hangar
The whole hangar was so good that I decided to do it twice: once on my own and then all over again on the free tour. An old Air Force guy took us round the whole lot in 45 minutes explaining the history of each plane with some bits and pieces about the war. If you want to give it a try then it begins underneath the gun turret of the Lancaster, or you can just sneak into the group as he’s walking around (just look for a guy who looks like he’s ex-Air Force).
The next hangar was full of aircraft from WWI and then it was back to the Battle of Britain again with another hangar full of Spitfires, Hurricanes and Messerschmitts and some ropey old waxworks acting out scenes from the Home Front.
Check out their terrifying waxwork of Churchill who looks like a porcelain ghost, and their life-size mock-up an Operations Room).
I can’t believe that this place is free. I am genuinely amazed that they don’t charge an entrance fee because I would happily stump up twenty quid.
If you enjoy this then try Imperial War Museum. There’s also a hangar full of planes inside the Science Museum
The author Craig Cross owns city-guide.london and has spent the last decade reviewing the capital’s landmarks, attractions and hotels. His guidebook London Squire is available from Amazon
Your comments and questions
PP How much to get in?
Craig Hi PP. Amazingly, it's completely free.
TomP How long do you need to see it all
Craig Hi TomP. I did the whole lot in 3 hours, but you could certainly spend more time there if you're really interested in planes. There's enough on show to fill up 4 or even 5 hours. It's truly huge
Blum How much is the car park
Craig Hi Blum. At the time of writing it's £4.50 for 0-3 hours and £6 for 3-6 hours, but check out their page here - rafmuseum.org.uk/london/plan-your-day/car-parking-charges/
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