It’s an old military airbase. It’s surrounded by sand. It’s out in the wilds. There, the similarities with Area 52 end, thankfully. It’s Airworld Aviation Museum, on the site of Caernarfon Airport in Wales. This delightful museum is one of a dying breed of museums, run by volunteers and reliant on admission fees and sales in the gift shops for funding. Inside is a pretty impressive set of aircraft and parts of aircraft. There’s a flight simulator, quite a few cockpits are accessible, and many of the seats need a good dose of re-upholstering.
Dwayne, as you can see, loved being able to get in and twiddle things. Captain Dwayne, I should say. At one point, I tried to open the throttles, and was dismissed from the cockpit. And the plane. (And no parachute for me…)
Inside you can see aircraft from early 20th century and newer:
- Hawker Hunter F1
- Hawker Siddeley T-Bird
- Hawker Sea Hawk
- Westland Whirlwind
- Bristol Sycamore
- D.H. Vampire TII
There are a lot more exhibits hanging from the roof and scattered around the buildings in small rooms off the main block. Pieces of radio equipment and engines are everywhere and it felt like wandering round a treasure vault filled with intriguing delights.
There’s plenty of information around, and usually somebody there to help answer any questions.
The gift shop (Oh no! We’re there again) is really good, and the toys our brood selected work well and were nicely made. Dwayne purchased a die cast fighter jet and has machine gunned me several times. (Not even a court martial!) Andrea selected a solar powered kit to build windmills and boats. (She’ll probably build a taser and zap me until I buy burgers.) All in all a lovely museum, and well worth the small entrance fee. There’s a beach close by and even a chip shop, if the airport cafe doesn’t tempt you.
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