The National Air Force Museum of Canada is an

aviation museum An aviation museum, air museum, or air and space museum is a museum exhibiting the history and artifacts of aviation. In addition to actual, replica or accurate reproduction aircraft, exhibits can include photographs, maps, models, dioramas ...

dedicated to preserving the history of the

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...

(RCAF) and is located on the west side of

CFB Trenton Canadian Forces Base Trenton (also CFB Trenton), formerly RCAF Station Trenton, is a Canadian Forces base located within the city of Quinte West, Ontario. It is operated as an air force base by the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and is the hub ...

Trenton, Ontario Trenton (2001 population 16,770) is a large unincorporated community in Central Ontario in the municipality of Quinte West, Ontario, Canada. Located on the Bay of Quinte, it is the starting point for the Trent-Severn Waterway, which continues n ...

. The museum is a permanent archive which collects, preserves and displays Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) memorabilia, photographs, paintings and documents as a lasting tribute and memorial to all the men and women who served in the RCAF and its predecessor organizations.

History

The RCAF Memorial Library and Museum opened on 1 April 1984 – the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the

– in the CFB Trenton Recreation Center. However, the museum quickly outgrew the location and moved to the base's former curling club exactly 10 years later in 1994. With the acquisition of a Handley Page Halifax restoration project in 1995, the museum was again short on space. So from 2004 to 2005 the museum constructed a purpose built Main Exhibition Hall. This was not before the name of the museum was changed to the Air Force National Museum in 1998. Ten years later, it was changed again to the National Air Force Museum of Canada. Between November 2012 and August 2013, a second phase of construction was completed on the main exhibition hall. This involved adding additional staircases between the two floors of the building and finishing various rooms. In 2016, the museum acquired an

Avro Lancaster The Avro Lancaster is a British Second World War heavy bomber. It was designed and manufactured by Avro as a contemporary of the Handley Page Halifax, both bombers having been developed to the same specification, as well as the Short Stir ...

that had been on display in Edmundston, New Brunswick. Chris Colton, the executive director of the museum for 21 years, retired in June 2018. Later that year, the museum acquired a CP-140 Aurora.

Collection

Aircraft on display

* AEA Silver Dart – replica *

Auster AOP.6 The Auster AOP.6 was a British military air observation aircraft produced by Auster Aircraft Limited to replace the numerous wartime Taylorcraft Auster aircraft then in-service. History The Auster AOP.6 (Auster Model K) was designed as a succe ...

Avro Anson The Avro Anson is a British twin-engined, multi-role aircraft built by the aircraft manufacturer Avro. Large numbers of the type served in a variety of roles for the Royal Air Force (RAF), Fleet Air Arm (FAA), Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) ...

* Avro Canada CF-100 Canuck ''18774'' *

Beechcraft CT-134 Musketeer The Beechcraft CT-134 Musketeer is a military training derivative of the Musketeer built by Beechcraft for the Canadian Armed Forces. The CT-134 was a single engine, low-wing, four-seat light aircraft with fixed landing gear and a limited aer ...

''134201'' * Bell CH-118 Iroquois ''118101'' *

Bell CH-135 Twin Huey The Bell UH-1N Twin Huey is a medium military helicopter designed and produced by the American aerospace manufacturer Bell Helicopter. It is a member of the extensive Huey family, the initial version was the CUH-1N Twin Huey (later CH-135 Twin ...

''135102'' *

Bell CH-136 Kiowa The Bell OH-58 Kiowa is a family of single-engine single-rotor military helicopters used for observation, utility, and direct fire support. It was produced by the American manufacturer Bell Helicopter and is closely related to the Model 206A ...

''136204'' * Boeing CH-47D Chinook ''147201'' *

Boeing Vertol CH-113 Labrador The Boeing Vertol CH-46 Sea Knight is a medium-lift tandem-rotor transport helicopter powered by twin turboshaft engines. It was designed by Vertol and manufactured by Boeing Vertol following Vertol's acquisition by Boeing. Development of ...

''11315'' *

Boeing 720 The Boeing 720 is an American narrow-body airliner produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Announced in July 1957 as a 707 derivative for shorter flights from shorter runways, the 720 first flew on November 23, 1959. Its type certificate was ...

''18024'' *

Bombardier CC-144 Challenger The Bombardier Challenger 600 series is a family of business jets developed by Canadair after a Bill Lear concept, and then produced from 1986 by its new owner, Bombardier Aerospace. At the end of 1975, Canadair began funding the development ...

''144601'' * Burgess-Dunne – replica * Canadair CF-5 Freedom Fighter ''11672'' *

Canadair CF-104 Starfighter The Canadair CF-104 Starfighter (CF-111, CL-90) is a modified version of the Lockheed F-104 Starfighter supersonic fighter aircraft built in Canada by Canadair under licence. It was primarily used as a ground attack aircraft, despite being ...

''104646'' * Canadair CP-107 Argus ''10732'' * Canadair CT-114 Tutor ''114015'' * Canadair CT-133 Silver Star ''21435'' * Canadair CT-133 Silver Star ''133593'' – cutaway * Canadair Sabre V ''23257'' * de Havilland Canada Chipmunk T.10 ''WB550'' * de Havilland Canada CP-121 Tracker ''1545'' * Douglas CC-129 Dakota ''12963'' * Handley Page Halifax A.VII ''NA337'' * Hawker Hunter F.58 ''J-4029'' * Hawker Hurricane II ''V7287'' – replica * Lockheed CC-130E Hercules ''130313'' *

McDonnell CF-101 Voodoo The McDonnell CF-101 Voodoo was an all-weather interceptor aircraft operated by the Royal Canadian Air Force and the Canadian Forces between 1961 and 1984. They were manufactured by the McDonnell Aircraft Corporation of St. Louis, Missouri for ...

''101040'' *

McDonnell Douglas CF-18 Hornet The McDonnell Douglas CF-18 Hornet (official military designation CF-188) is a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) variant of the American McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet fighter aircraft. In 1980, the F/A-18 was selected as the winner of the New ...

''188911'' * Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21MF ''23+45'' * North American Harvard II ''3270'' *

North American Yale The North American NA-64 (NA-64 P-2 or NAA-64 P-2 in French service, Yale in Canadian service) is a low-wing single piston engine monoplane advanced trainer aircraft that was built for the French Air Force and French Navy, served with the Royal C ...

''3411'' * SAGEM Sperwer ''161007'' * Sikorsky Dragonfly ''9601'' * Supermarine Spitfire IX ''ML380'' – replica

Under restoration

* Avro Lancaster B.X ''KB882'' * Lockheed Hudson VI ''FK466''

Memorials

There are 29 memorials and cairns dedicated to RCAF squadrons and units: *

No. 6 Group RCAF No. 6 Group RCAF was a group of Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) heavy bomber squadrons in Europe during the Second World War, between 1942 and 1945. The group operated out of airfields in Yorkshire, England. History No. 6 Group was a Royal Can ...

No. 6 Repair Depot No. 6 Repair Depot (6 RD) was an aircraft modification and repair unit of the Royal Canadian Air Force's Air Materiel Command located at Trenton, Ontario. Duties of No. 6 RD included handling aircraft at other stations around southern Ontario and ...

* 306 Maple Leaf Wing RCAFA * 405 Squadron * 407 Demon Squadron * 408 Squadron * 413 Squadron * 424 Squadron * 426 Squadron * 429 Squadron *

431 Squadron Year 431 ( CDXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Bassus and Antiochus (or, less frequently, year 1184 ''Ab urbe c ...

* 434 Squadron * 435 Squadron * 436 Squadron * 437 Squadron * 438 Squadron * AWFP Association * Burma Bomber Association * Canadian Military Flight Engineers Association * Dodo Birds – ex RCAF Flight Sergeants * Jewish Memorial * Loadmaster Memorial * Mobile Support Equipment * Non-Destructive Testing * Para Rescue Association of Canada * RCAF and Allied Forces Bomber Command * RCAF Fighter Pilots Association * RCAF Meteorologists * RCAF Police * Sabre Pilots I Air Division * Workshop Machinists

Affiliations

The museum is affiliated with: CMA,

CHIN The chin is the forward pointed part of the anterior mandible ( mental region) below the lower lip. A fully developed human skull has a chin of between 0.7 cm and 1.1 cm. Evolution The presence of a well-developed chin is considered to be one ...

, OMMC and

Virtual Museum of Canada The Digital Museums Canada (DMC; , ''MNC'') is a funding program in Canada "dedicated to online projects by the museum and heritage community," helping organizations to build digital capacity. Administered by the Canadian Museum of History (CMH) ...

References

External links

*
History of the Canadian Forces Museums 1919–2004

Photos of the museum collection

{{DEFAULTSORT:National Air Force Museum Of Canada History of Canadian military aviation Royal Canadian Air Force Military and war museums in Canada Military history of Canada Aerospace museums in Ontario Air force museums Museums in Hastings County