The Royal Air Force Museum in Hendon provides a great day out for all the family plus excellent facilitiies available for hire for receptions, dinners, parties and all manner of celebrations.
Welcome to the world of the Royal Air Force Museum, London's only national museum dedicated wholly to aviation, based in Colindale in the Borough of Barnet .
The Museum is situated on the site of the original London Aerodrome in Colindale, used for the great Hendon Pageants, summer air-shows that took place on the site between the two World Wars, which attracted over a million visitors annually.
Today on this site you will find five mammoth hangars which contain over a hundred aircraft, artefacts, aviation memorabilia, fine art and photographs covering the history of aviation from early balloon flights to the latest jet fighters.
While offering a detailed insight into aviation technology, the Museum also focuses on the people who made it possible - from daredevil early aviators, through wartime heroes, to the thousands of ordinary Service men and women whose contribution shapes the world we live in today.
What you can do at the museum
To aid understanding, particularly amongst our younger visitors, the museum runs a full programme of family orientated events throughout the year and has a range of interactive displays specifically for children. These include:
interactive kiosks, dotted around the Museum
the Museum's 3D cinema in Milestones of Flight
'Aeronauts' our interactive gallery for children where they are encouraged to play with and explore various experiments that demonstrate how aircrafts fly and
the Museum's sound and light show 'Our Finest Hour' which narrates the story of the Battle of Britain, in the Museum's Battle of Britain Hall, on the hour from 11am to 5pm.
Additionally, the museum also has two simulators located in the Museum's 'Historic Hangars' and 'Milestones of Flight' showing a range of flight based films plus a 4D Theatre with dynamic seating and full environmental effects that you to enjoy the true feeling of flight (admission charges apply).
Free Admission
Admission to the museum itself is free . There is a small car parking charge of £2.50 a vehicle for a stay of up to 3 hours and £3.50 for up to 6 hours.
Opening times
The museum is open daily from 10am to 6pm , with last admission onto the museum's site at 5.30pm. The museum is also closed on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day and from 9th to 12th of January 2012.
All in all, the Royal Air Force Museum, provides a great day out for children of all ages.
See the museum website for details: http://www.rafmuseum.org.uk .
Don't forget to mention thebestof Barnet Borough when contacting the Royal Air Force Museum .
The Royal Air Force Museum's Corporate Venue Facilities
The Royal Air Force Museum also offers a wide range of versatile areas available for receptions, dinners, Christmas parties and all manner of celebrations.
If you are looking for an exclusive venue to really impress your guests, you can't get more unique than our selection of three Hangars available for evening events.
Imagine your drinks reception beneath iconic aircraft such as the Spitfire and Hurricane in our Battle of Britain Hall or dinner underneath the wings of the magnificent Avro Lancaster in our Historic Hangars.
If you want a more contemporary space the Milestones of Flight Hangar is perfect if you are looking to impress.
We can also offer a wide range of versatile rooms for meetings, exhibitions, conferences and product launches; from our fixed, tiered seating Lecture Theatre for 224 people, our Dermot Boyle Wing which offers a total floor space of 480 sq metres, to our recently refurbished Boardroom for up to 20 people.
In addition, all daytime corporate guests have complimentary access to the Museum during opening hours, with free parking for all corporate and private events and easily accessible by road, rail and tube, making it the perfect venue for any event.
All rates include AV support and event management and our dedicated and experienced events team endeavour to make the planning and implementation of your event as painless as possible.
Please don't hesitate to contact a member of our events team to discuss your future event in more detail and if you quote 'Best of Barnet' we will offer you a 15% discount off the venue hire charge for all events taking place before 31st March 2012.