Museums are ranked by how many Second World War airframes their inventories list, cockpits and replicas included. Each museum page has the full checklist.
Where to go
South West England: museums with Second World War aircraft
| Museum | Second World War airframes | Adult entry | Airframes | Examples | Headline exhibit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fleet Air Arm MuseumYeovil, Somerset | 17 | £21 | 97 | Blackburn Skua II wreckage L2940 Vought Corsair IV KD431 Fairey Fulmar II N1854 |
Concorde 002 (G-BSST), the first British-assembled Concorde, which made her maiden flight from Filton in 1969 and now headlines a hall of… |
| Boscombe Down Aviation CollectionSalisbury, Wiltshire | 3 | £13.50 | 49 | Douglas C-47A Skytrain nose section 42-93510 Taylorcraft Auster AOP.5 MS968 Avro Lancaster B.I cockpit section PD130 |
The Lancaster cockpit reproduction tour, and a test-and-evaluation pedigree collection you can physically inhabit rather than admire… |
| Aerospace BristolBristol, Gloucestershire | 2 | £20 | 14 | Bristol Bolingbroke IVT 9048 Bristol Beaufighter IIF forward fuselage (sectioned) |
Concorde G-BOAF, the last Concorde ever built and the last ever to fly (26 November 2003, into Filton, forever). You can board her.… |
| Jet Age MuseumGloucester, Gloucestershire | 2 | Donation | 15 | Gloster E.28/39 Pioneer reproduction W4041 Hawker Hurricane Mk I replica V6799 |
Gloucestershire's jet-age shrine (free!) beside Staverton airport: Gloster heritage from the E.28/39 replica to Javelins, with… |
| Bournemouth Aviation MuseumChristchurch, Dorset | 1 | £10 | 29 | North American Harvard IIB (composite) KF388 | The sit-anywhere policy itself — one entry fee, no per-cockpit charges, a full BAC 1-11 flight-deck sim in a shed, and thousands… |
| Cornwall at War Museum, DavidstowCamelford, Cornwall | 1 | £7 | 8 | Fieseler Fi 103 (V-1) replica | Cornwall’s big WW2 / military museum on the old RAF Davidstow Moor Coastal Command field — aircraft, military vehicles, humour intact,… |
| The Helicopter MuseumWeston-super-Mare, Somerset | 1 | £15 | 108 | Hafner R.II Revoplane BAPC.10 | G-LYNX, the modified Westland Lynx that took the absolute helicopter world speed record (249.09 mph) in 1986 and holds it still; parked… |
The era
Second World War, 1939–1945
The Fleet Air Arm Museum at Yeovilton has 11 Second World War airframes: Corsair KD431, Fulmar N1854, Hellcat KE209, Martlet AL246 and a Swordfish. The Boscombe Down Aviation Collection keeps Lancaster cockpit section PD130. Aerospace Bristol has Bolingbroke 9048, a Canadian-built Blenheim. The Jet Age Museum has a Hurricane replica.
- The Fleet Air Arm Museum sits beside RNAS Yeovilton, so its Wildcats and Merlins provide the noise.
- The Boscombe Down Aviation Collection runs daily tours of its Lancaster cockpit.
- The Dunkeswell and Upottery heritage centres are free, 4 miles apart and open Thursday to Sunday, Easter to October.
What to see
Second World War types on display in South West England
1934Fairey Swordfish11935North American Harvard21935Douglas C-47 Dakota11935Bristol Blenheim11935Hawker Hurricane11936Supermarine Spitfire11937Blackburn Skua11938Fairey Albacore & Barracuda31939Taylorcraft Auster11939Bristol Beaufighter11940Vought Corsair11940Douglas Skyraider & Curtiss Helldiver21941Fairey Fulmar & Firefly21941Grumman Navy set31941Avro Lancaster11941Gloster E.28/3911942Focke-Achgelis Fa 330 & Flettner Fl 28211942Fieseler Fi 103 (V-1)11942Hafner Rotachute & Rotabuggy11944Yokosuka MXY-7 Ohka1
Questions
Frequently asked
Where can I see naval aircraft from the Second World War?
The Fleet Air Arm Museum at Yeovilton, with a Corsair, Fulmar, Hellcat, Martlet, Avenger and Swordfish.
Can you sit in a Lancaster cockpit in the South West?
The Boscombe Down Aviation Collection at Old Sarum tours its Lancaster cockpit section.
Which South West museum has the most Second World War aircraft?
The Fleet Air Arm Museum, with 11.