Museums are ranked by how many early jet airframes their inventories list, cockpits and replicas included. Each museum page has the full checklist.
Where to go
Northern England: museums with early jet aircraft
| Museum | early jet airframes | Adult entry | Airframes | Examples | Headline exhibit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Yorkshire Aircraft MuseumDoncaster, South Yorkshire | 50 | £7.50 | 109 | Westland-Bell Sioux AH.1 XT242 Bristol Sycamore HR.14 XE317 Cessna 140 cockpit section G-BTYX |
Doncaster's South Yorkshire Aircraft Museum sprawls across the old RAF Doncaster site: dozens of airframes and helicopters, strong… |
| North East Land, Sea and Air MuseumsSunderland, Tyne and Wear | 21 | £7.50 | 46 | Avro Vulcan B.2 XL319 Hunting Jet Provost T.4 XP627 Hunting Jet Provost T.3 nose section XN503 |
NELSAM in Sunderland mixes Vulcan XL319 (flew in when the airport still existed), a Pucará from the Falklands, trams, buses and a… |
| Yorkshire Air MuseumYork, North Yorkshire | 20 | £17 | 54 | Gloster Meteor F.8 WL168 Armstrong Whitworth Meteor NF.14 WS788 Slingsby T.7 Kirby Cadet TX.1 RA854 |
Halifax 'Friday the 13th' — the world's only complete Halifax reconstruction, honouring the type that flew from this very field —… |
| Hooton Park HangarsEllesmere Port, Cheshire | 12 | £9 | 45 | Gloster Meteor T.7 WH132 de Havilland Vampire T.11 XD624 English Electric Canberra PR.7 cockpit section WT520 |
Hooton Park's 1917 Belfast-truss hangars — among the finest WWI aviation buildings surviving — hold aircraft, buses and a printing museum… |
| Solway Aviation MuseumCrosby on Eden, Cumbria | 12 | £8 | 21 | Avro Vulcan B.2 XJ823 BAC Jet Provost T.4 XS209 de Havilland Vampire T.11 WZ515 |
Vulcan XJ823 with pre-bookable crew-compartment visits; a Phantom, Lightning and Canberra (whose three-crew cockpit reviewers describe as… |
| Avro Heritage MuseumStockport, Greater Manchester | 5 | £9 | 14 | Avro Vulcan B.2 XM603 Avro Vulcan B.2 cockpit section XM602 English Electric Canberra TT.18 cockpit section (in store) WK118 |
Vulcan XM603 — the only all-white Vulcan on display anywhere, in original anti-flash nuclear livery — plus walk-in Lancaster and Nimrod… |
| Speke Aerodrome Heritage GroupLiverpool, Merseyside | 4 | Free | 7 | Bristol Britannia 308F G-ANCF Percival Prince 6E G-AMLZ Grumman AA-1 Yankee G-SEXY |
Speke Airport Museum — Speke Aerodrome Heritage Group keeps airliners, including a Dan-Air 748 under restoration, on Liverpool's gorgeous… |
| The Vulcan Experience (XH558)Doncaster, South Yorkshire | 2 | £12 | 2 | Avro Vulcan B.2 XH558 English Electric Canberra B.2 WK163 |
The Vulcan Experience at Doncaster is the retirement home of XH558 — the last-flying Vulcan — with underwing tours, cockpit visits and… |
The era
Early jet age, 1943–1957
The South Yorkshire Aircraft Museum at Doncaster has 44 airframes of the period, the most of any museum in the gazetteer. The Yorkshire Air Museum and the North East Land, Sea and Air Museums have 20 each; NELSAM keeps Vulcan XL319. Solway has Vulcan XJ823. The Avro Heritage Museum has XM603 in anti-flash white. Speke has Britannia G-ANCF.
- XH558 can be seen only on pre-booked visits; it is 5 miles from the South Yorkshire Aircraft Museum.
- Solway offers pre-bookable visits to XJ823’s crew compartment.
- The Avro Heritage Museum and Manchester’s Runway Visitor Park are 6 miles apart.
What to see
Early jet age types on display in Northern England
1943de Havilland Vampire51943Gloster Meteor81945Bell 47 / Sioux11945Cessna, Piper & the American light aircraft71945de Havilland Dove family21946de Havilland Canada Chipmunk101946Percival Prentice11947Bristol Sycamore21947Vickers Valetta & Varsity21947North American Sabre11948Saunders-Roe Skeeter31948Slingsby glider family161948Westland Dragonfly & Widgeon41948Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star11948Percival Pembroke & Sea Prince21949English Electric Canberra171949de Havilland Venom & Sea Venom11949de Havilland Comet11949Avro Shackleton31949Avro 70711950Blackburn Beverley21950Republic F-84F Thunderstreak11951Hawker Hunter81952Avro Vulcan61952Handley Page Victor11952Bristol Britannia11953Westland Whirlwind (helicopter)71953North American F-100 Super Sabre11954Hunting Jet Provost101955Folland Gnat1
Questions
Frequently asked
Where can I see a Vulcan in the North?
Doncaster (XH558), Woodford (XM603), Sunderland (XL319) and Carlisle (XJ823).
Which northern museum has the most early jets?
The South Yorkshire Aircraft Museum, with 44 from 1943–1957.
Is there a white Vulcan?
Yes: XM603 at the Avro Heritage Museum, in anti-flash white.