About this museum
Also known as / searched as: Bentwaters Museum · RAF Bentwaters · Bentwaters Cold War Museum · BCWM
Bentwaters Cold War Museum occupies the actual USAF hardened command post — war room, battle cabin and decontamination showers intact — on the A-10 base made famous by the Rendlesham Forest UFO incident, which the volunteers will discuss with admirable patience.
Listed inventory: 9 airframes.
Limited open days; the paid hardened-shelter restoration tours get superlatives.
- “Excellent and authentic museum. We've also visited the aircraft restauration bunker, which was very nice as well.”— Richard Bijlard
- “Great museum very interesting lovely and very knowledgeable staff !!!”— Claire Taylor
- “If aviation or military (or both) are you're thing, it's well worth a visit. Comprehensive histories of the base itself, along with the USAF operations, the wealth of information and things to see/read is incredible.”— Ben Wells
Public map reports · excerpted for reference · not reviews collected by this gazetteer
Frequently asked
How much does Bentwaters Cold War Museum cost?
Adult admission is listed as £7.50. Check the museum's current prices before travelling.
Which aircraft can you see at Bentwaters Cold War Museum?
The listed collection includes BAe Harrier GR.3 (ZD667), English Electric Lightning F.53 (ZF581), Fairchild A-10A Thunderbolt II (80-0219), Gloster Meteor F.8 (WH453), Hawker Hunter GA.11 (XE707). Aircraft move between displays, so confirm current holdings before travelling.
Does Bentwaters Cold War Museum have parking or a cafe?
Parking is recorded on site; no cafe or restaurant is recorded. Check current facilities with the museum before travelling.
Airframe checklist
Tick them off as you go. Identities are as held in the gazetteer survey — verify against the museum’s own labels if something has moved.
| Type | Identity | |
|---|---|---|
| BAe Harrier GR.3 | ZD667 | |
| English Electric Lightning F.53 | ZF581 | |
| Fairchild A-10A Thunderbolt II | 80-0219 | |
| Gloster Meteor F.8 | WH453 | |
| Hawker Hunter GA.11 | XE707 | |
| Lockheed T-33A Shooting Star | 19252 | |
| McDonnell Douglas Phantom FGR.2 | XV401 | |
| Republic F-84F Thunderstreak | FU-6 | |
| SEPECAT Jaguar GR.1A | XX741 |
Inventory last verified 2026-07-18: source 1 · source 2. Aircraft move between sites; report corrections to the compiler.
Location & contact
- Address
- Building 134, Bentwaters Parks, Rendlesham, Woodbridge IP12 2TW
- Website
- www.bcwm.org.uk/
- Gazetteer
- EA-10 on the situation map