The Nationaal Luchtvaart-Themapark Aviodrome (also known simply as Aviodrome) is a large aerospace museum in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

that has been located on

Lelystad Airport Lelystad Airport is an airport south southeast of the city of Lelystad in Flevoland, Netherlands. It is the biggest general aviation airport in the Netherlands. The first flights were in 1971 and it became an official airport in 1973. Schipho ...

since 2003. Previously the museum was located at

Schiphol Airport Amsterdam Airport Schiphol , known informally as Schiphol Airport ( nl, Luchthaven Schiphol, ), is the main international airport of the Netherlands. It is located southwest of Amsterdam, in the municipality of Haarlemmermeer in the province ...

.Engels
" National Aerospace Museum Aviodome-Schiphol. 6 August 2002. Retrieved on 26 December 2011. "Westelijke Randweg 201, 1118 CT Luchthaven Schiphol"

History

In 1955 several organisations, such as the airline

KLM KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, legally ''Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V.'' (literal translation: Royal Aviation Company Plc.), is the flag carrier airline of the Netherlands. KLM is headquartered in Amstelveen, with its hub at nearby Amste ...

and aircraft manufacturer Fokker, initiated a foundation called "Stichting voor het Nationaal Luchtvaartmuseum" with the single goal of creating a national aviation museum. The first installment of this aviation museum opened its doors in 1960 at

Schiphol Amsterdam Airport Schiphol , known informally as Schiphol Airport ( nl, Luchthaven Schiphol, ), is the main international airport of the Netherlands. It is located southwest of Amsterdam, in the municipality of Haarlemmermeer in the province ...

airport under the name Aeroplanorama and had only seven

aircraft An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engine ...

on display. It closed its doors in 1967 and a new museum called Aviodome was opened in 1971 at Schiphol. The main building was a large aluminium

geodesic dome A geodesic dome is a hemispherical thin-shell structure (lattice-shell) based on a geodesic polyhedron. The triangular elements of the dome are structurally rigid and distribute the structural stress throughout the structure, making geodesic do ...

Buckminster Fuller Richard Buckminster Fuller (; July 12, 1895 – July 1, 1983) was an American architect, systems theorist, writer, designer, inventor, philosopher, and futurist. He styled his name as R. Buckminster Fuller in his writings, publishing mo ...

, the largest in the world at the time, which housed most of the aircraft on display. Hence the 'dome' in the name Aviodome. Over time, the location became too small for the growing aircraft collection and in 2003 the museum was moved to a new location on Lelystad Airport. The building at Schiphol was demolished and the name was changed to Aviodrome. On the current location, it has three buildings: the main building where most of the aircraft on display are located and where there's a restaurant and a cinema, a replica of the old Schiphol terminal building from 1928 and a hangar for aircraft storage with limited access for visitors. Added to the aviation theme were several artifacts from several Dutch space programs, such as the backup flight-article of ANS (

Astronomical Netherlands Satellite The Astronomical Netherlands Satellite (ANS; also known as Astronomische Nederlandse Satelliet) was a space-based X-ray and ultraviolet telescope. It was launched into Earth orbit on 30 August 1974 at 14:07:39 UTC in a Scout rocket from Vandenb ...

), a mockup of

IRAS The Infrared Astronomical Satellite (Dutch: ''Infrarood Astronomische Satelliet'') (IRAS) was the first space telescope to perform a survey of the entire night sky at infrared wavelengths. Launched on 25 January 1983, its mission lasted ten mo ...

and the high-speed windtunnel model of the

Huygens probe ''Huygens'' ( ) was an atmospheric entry robotic space probe that landed successfully on Saturn's moon Titan in 2005. Built and operated by the European Space Agency (ESA), launched by NASA, it was part of the ''Cassini–Huygens'' mission and ...

. In doing so the aviation museum became an aerospace museum. Due to bankruptcy, the museum closed on 25 December 2011, but it reopened on 28 April 2012 after a takeover by the Libéma Group.

Collection

Aircraft collection

Note that not all aircraft listed are currently on display or even present at the museum. The museum also frequently houses or is visited by aircraft that are not owned by the museum. * Aérospatiale Dauphin 2 * Agusta - Bell 204B UH-1 *

Alsema Sagitta The N.V. Vliegtuigbouw 013 Sagitta ( en, Arrow) is a Dutch mid-wing, single-seat Standard Class glider designed by Piet Alsema and produced by N.V. Vliegtuigbouw.Said, Bob: ''1983 Sailplane Directory, Soaring Magazine'', page 96, Soaring So ...

* ANR-1

airship An airship or dirigible balloon is a type of aerostat or lighter-than-air aircraft that can navigate through the air under its own power. Aerostats gain their lift from a lifting gas that is less dense than the surrounding air. In early ...

gondola * Antonov An-2 * Auster J.1 Autocrat *

BAC Jet Provost The BAC Jet Provost is a British jet trainer aircraft that was in use with the Royal Air Force (RAF) from 1955 to 1993. It was originally developed by Hunting Percival from the earlier piston engine-powered Percival Provost basic trainer, a ...

(cockpit only) * B.A.T. F.K.23 Bantam * 4x balloon basket Catalina Aviodrome

* Ballooncapsule Dutch Viking * Beechcraft D-18, used in the

James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...

movie

Octopussy ''Octopussy'' is a 1983 spy film and the thirteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions. It is the sixth to star Roger Moore as the MI6 agent James Bond. It was directed by John Glen and the screenplay was written by G ...

* Birdman Cherokee * Blackburn Buccaneer (cockpit only) *

Blériot XI The Blériot XI is a French aircraft of the pioneer era of aviation. The first example was used by Louis Blériot to make the first flight across the English Channel in a heavier-than-air aircraft, on 25 July 1909. This is one of the most fa ...

Boeing 747-200 The Boeing 747 is a large, long-range wide-body airliner designed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in the United States between 1968 and 2022. After introducing the 707 in October 1958, Pan Am wanted a jet times its size, t ...

''Louis Blériot'' *

Bölkow Bo 105 The Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm Bo 105 is a light, twin-engine, multi-purpose helicopter developed by Bölkow of Ottobrunn, West Germany. It was the first light twin-engine helicopter in the world, and the first rotorcraft that could perform a ...

* Cierva C.30A Autogiro * Consolidated PBY5A Catalina *

Cessna 172 The Cessna 172 Skyhawk is an American four-seat, single-engine, high wing, fixed-wing aircraft made by the Cessna Aircraft Company.De Havilland Canada Beaver The de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver is a single-engined high-wing propeller-driven short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft developed and manufactured by de Havilland Canada. It has been primarily operated as a bush plane and has been used ...

(cockpit only) * De Havilland DH.82A Tiger Moth * 2x De Havilland DH.104 Dove (one complete and one cockpit) *

DFS Olympia The DFS Olympia Meise (German: "Olympic Titmouse") was a German sailplane designed by the Deutsche Forschungsanstalt für Segelflug (DFS) for Olympic competition, based on the DFS Meise. Design and development After the Olympic games in Berlin ...

* 2x

Douglas C-47 Skytrain The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota ( RAF, RAAF, RCAF, RNZAF, and SAAF designation) is a military transport aircraft developed from the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II and remained ...

* 2x Douglas DC-2 (one flying, the other in bad state and incomplete) * Douglas DC-3 * Douglas DC-4 Skymaster * Evans VP-1 Volksplane * V-1 "Flying bomb" (model) * Firebird ultralight * 2x

Fokker Spin The Fokker ''Spin'' was the first airplane built by Dutch aviation pioneer Anthony Fokker. The many bracing wires used to strengthen the aircraft made it resemble a giant spider, hence its name ''Spin'', Dutch for "spider". Fokker built the ''Sp ...

* Fokker Dr.I * Fokker F.2 * Fokker B-4A (incomplete) * Fokker C-5D * Fokker F-7a * Fokker F-8 "Duif" * Fokker S-4 (incomplete) * 4 x

Fokker S-11 The Fokker S-11 Instructor is a single-engine two-seater propeller aircraft designed and manufactured by the Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker. History One of the first activities undertaken by Fokker after World War II was the design of a new ...

instructors (used in airshows) * Fokker S-12 * Fokker S-13 (tailpiece only) * Fokker S-14 machtrainer * 2x

Fokker F-27 Friendship The Fokker F27 Friendship is a turboprop airliner developed and manufactured by the Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker. It is the most numerous post-war aircraft manufactured in the Netherlands; the F27 was also one of the most successful Euro ...

(one still airworthy) * Fokker F-27-050 (F-50 prototype based on F-27) *

Fokker 100 The Fokker 100 is a regional jet produced by Fokker in the Netherlands. The Fokker 100 is based on the Fokker F28 with a fuselage stretched by to seat up to 109 passengers, up from 85. It is powered by two newer Rolls-Royce Tay turbofans, ...

* Mock-up cockpit Fokker 100 *

Fouga Magister Fouga (also known as Air Fouga) was a French manufacturing company established by Gaston Fouga at Béziers during 1920. Originally specialising in the repair of railway rolling stock, the firm eventually became most noted for the aircraft it p ...

(flying) * 2x Grumman S2N Tracker *

Grunau Baby The Schneider Grunau Baby was a single-seat sailplane first built in Germany in 1931, with some 6,000 examples constructed in some 20 countries. It was relatively easy to build from plans, it flew well, and the aircraft was strong enough to han ...

Hawker Sea Fury The Hawker Sea Fury is a British fighter aircraft designed and manufactured by Hawker Aircraft. It was the last propeller-driven fighter to serve with the Royal Navy, and one of the fastest production single reciprocating engine aircraft ...

* Hawker Hunter Mk.4 *

Hawker Sea Hawk The Hawker Sea Hawk is a British single-seat jet day fighter formerly of the Fleet Air Arm (FAA), the air branch of the Royal Navy (RN), built by Hawker Aircraft and its sister company, Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft. Although its design origina ...

* Junkers Ju 52 (license built by CASA) * Lilienthal Gleitflugzeug (German for glider) replica *

Lockheed L-749 Constellation The Lockheed L-749 Constellation is the first Lockheed Constellation to regularly cross the Atlantic Ocean non-stop. Although similar in appearance to the L-649 before it, the L-749 had a larger fuel capacity, strengthened landing gear, and even ...

* 2x

Lockheed F-104 Starfighter The Lockheed F-104 Starfighter is an American single-engine, supersonic air superiority fighter which was extensively deployed as a fighter-bomber during the Cold War. Created as a day fighter by Lockheed as one of the "Century Series" of fi ...

* Lockheed SP2H Neptune * MiG-21 PFM Fishbed-F * 2x

Mignet HM-14 Pou du Ciel The Mignet HM.14 ''Flying Flea'' (''Pou du Ciel'' literally "Louse of the Sky" in French) is a single-seat light aircraft first flown in 1933, designed for amateur construction. It was the first of a family of aircraft collectively known as Flyi ...

* N.H.I. H.2 Kolibri * N.H.I. H.3 Kolibri * Noorduyn C-64 Norseman (in restoration) * Noorduyn Harvard * North American B.25 Mitchell (incomplete) * Pander Zögling *

Piper J-3 Cub The Piper J-3 Cub is an American light aircraft that was built between 1938 and 1947 by Piper Aircraft. The aircraft has a simple, lightweight design which gives it good low-speed handling properties and short-field performance. The Cub is Pi ...

* Raytheon Hawk missile * Rienks R-1B giroglider * Rogallo sailplane "Engel" prototype * Rogallo sailplane Penguin * Rogallo sailplane La Mouette Cobra * Saab 91D Safir *

Saab Viggen The Saab 37 Viggen ( Swedish for ''"the Bolt"'' or ''"the Tufted Duck"'' ( see name)) is a retired Swedish single-seat, single-engine, short-medium range combat aircraft. Development work on the type was initiated at Saab in 1952 and, follow ...

* 3x Schleicher Ka-4 Rhönlerche (only one in good condition) * Schleicher Ka-8B * Sikorski S-55 * 3x Stearman Hammond Y-1S * Sud Aviation SE.210 Caravelle (cockpit only) * Supermarine Spitfire (replica) * Van Ommeren VO-3 *

Westland WS-51 Dragonfly The Westland WS-51 Dragonfly helicopter was built by Westland Aircraft and was an Anglicised licence-built version of the American Sikorsky S-51. Design and development On 19 January 1947 an agreement was signed between Westland Aircraft an ...

Wright Flyer The ''Wright Flyer'' (also known as the ''Kitty Hawk'', ''Flyer'' I or the 1903 ''Flyer'') made the first sustained flight by a manned heavier-than-air powered and controlled aircraft—an airplane—on December 17, 1903. Invented and flown b ...

replica

Space collection

(backup flight-article) * Infrared Astronomy Satellite - IRAS (mockup partially built from structural spares) *

(windtunnel model)

Noteworthy projects

Jumbo's touchdown

In 2004 the last of KLM's classic Boeing 747-200's named Louis Blériot was sold to the Aviodrome for the symbolic amount of 1 euro. Though the aircraft could still fly, Lelystad Airport was too small to handle such a large aircraft so the aircraft was partially disassembled and moved over water on a

barge Barge nowadays generally refers to a flat-bottomed inland waterway vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. The first modern barges were pulled by tugs, but nowadays most are pushed by pusher boats, or other vessels ...

with the wings, engines and empennage removed and stored alongside the fuselage so the aircraft could fit under bridges along the way. After the journey over water that attracted a lot of attention the aircraft was lifted from the barge at

Harderwijk Harderwijk (; Dutch Low Saxon: ) is a municipality and city of the Netherlands. It is served by the Harderwijk railway station. Its population centres are Harderwijk and Hierden. Harderwijk is on the western boundary of the Veluwe. The south ...

and the last bit of the trip took place over land. At its final location the aircraft was re-assembled and opened to the public. The tail was fitted with a top beacon since, technically, the Boeing now is a building.

Connie's comeback

Perhaps one of the most spectacular pieces in the collection of the Aviodrome is the Lockheed L-749 Constellation, often just called ''Connie''. After several years of restoration work it was flown over to the Netherlands in 2002 from the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

where it had been in storage. More work, including a new paint job, was done to the aircraft in the Netherlands but the aircraft suffered from engine problems in 2004. To resolve this, two replacement engines coming from the

Korean Air Korean Air Co., Ltd. (), operating as Korean Air (Korean Air Lines before 1984), is the flag carrier of South Korea and its largest airline based on fleet size, international destinations and international flights. The present-day Korean Air ...

museum were fitted. However, it hasn't flown since 2004, performances by the aircraft being limited to engine runs only.

De Uiver

De Uiver was the name of a Douglas DC-2 that placed second in the 1934

MacRobertson Air Race The MacRobertson Trophy Air Race (also known as the London to Melbourne Air Race) took place in October 1934 as part of the Melbourne Centenary celebrations. The race was devised by the Lord Mayor of Melbourne, Sir Harold Gengoult Smith, and th ...

, only being beaten by a purpose built de Havilland DH.88 racer ''Grosvenor House''. The real Uiver, which is an old Dutch word for Stork, no longer exists. The Aviodrome owns one of the last still airworthy DC-2s in the world. This DC-2 is a former

US Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

aircraft painted in the Uiver's original KLM colors. After an unexpected gear collapse the aircraft suffered some minor damage, but after the needed funds were raised the aircraft was repaired.

Fokker Friendship

The Fokker F-27 ''Friendship'' was Fokker's best selling aircraft model of all time. Production of this first post-war Fokker airliner started in 1955 and many of them are still in service today. The Aviodrome purchased the oldest still flying series produced F-27 from its Australian owner in 2004 and painted it in the colors of the no longer existing Nederlandse Luchtvaart Maatschappij (NLM). Exactly fifty years after the first flight of the first F-27 on 24 November 1955 this aircraft made a memorial flight as a tribute to fifty years Fokker Friendship.

References

External links

Aviodrome
official website {{authority control Aerospace museums in the Netherlands Museums in Flevoland Buildings and structures in Lelystad