More than 70 meters long, a Airbus A380 is parked a few meters from a Boeing 747 , an aircraft that was once considered the “Queen of the Skies”. Two supersonic jets Agree are also side by side, and, in the neighboring gallery, World War II planes reminiscent of the technology of the past.
So is the French National Air and Space Museum (Musée de l’Air et de l’Espace), the country’s main aeronautical museum, located just 10 minutes by car from Paris.
The museum occupies part of the Le Bourget Airport the first major airport to serve Paris, and has more than 350 planes, satellites, rockets, works of art, uniforms and historical documents covering three branches of flight: ballooning, aviation and space.
In total there are nine different exhibition rooms, as well as an outdoor exhibition area close to the runway, planetarium and kids area with interactive activities about aeronautics and space.
Santos Dumont plane and rockets
One of the galleries is dedicated to the pioneers of aviation, dating back to the first balloon trip to the beginning of aviation. Among the items there is the plane Demoiselle creation of none other than Santos Dumont . Completed in 1908, the Demoiselle was an airplane designed to be mass-produced and had a bamboo fuselage.
The Concorde Hall is where jets, which became widespread after the war, are on display. It is the only place in the world where visitors can check out two Concordes, a British-French supersonic plane that could reach almost twice the speed of sound.
In the outdoor area, it is possible to get up close to an A380, the largest commercial plane in the world, as well as a Boeing 747 and admire two full-size models of the Ariane I and Ariane V rockets, which measure 47 and 50 meters respectively. They were built by the European Space Agency (ESA), the French National Center for Space Studies (CNES) and the company Arianespace.
Other galleries include items important to French military aviation, as well as some military gyrocopters and helicopters and artifacts important to the development of military aviation from its beginnings in 1914 until the Second World War.
Other parallel activities also entertain children. Alongside them it is possible to enter the planetarium, which answers some questions about space, including curiosities about the circumference of the Sun and how long it takes to travel to Mars, or even take advantage of the “Planète Pilote” area, a thousand square meter space with more than 40 interactive activities about aeronautics and space.
Throughout the year, some special events take place at the museum, such as outdoor film screenings projected onto the Boeing 747 fuselage. site.
The full price for the museum’s permanent exhibition is €17 (around R$98) for people over 26 years old. Individuals under 26 years of age do not pay, and entry on the first Sunday of each month is free. Some activities are paid, such as entry into some planes, which range from €6 to €8 (between R$34 and R$46).
Expansion of the Musée de l’Air et de l’Espaco
Over the next few years, expansions are planned at the museum in time for the arrival of line 17 of the Grand Paris Express metro in 2026.
A new 4,000-square-meter building and gallery dedicated to air traffic control are among the planned openings, according to the French press.
Air and Space Museum: Paris-Le Bourget Airport / Opening hours: open every day, except Mondays / Opening hours: from 10am to 6pm between April 1st and September 30th and from 10am to 5pm between October 1st and March 31st.
Source: CNN Brasil
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