The Swedish Air Force Museum ( sv, Flygvapenmuseum) is located at Malmen Airbase in Malmslätt, just outside

Linköping Linköping () is a city in southern Sweden, with around 105,000 inhabitants as of 2021. It is the seat of Linköping Municipality and the capital of Östergötland County. Linköping is also the episcopal see of the Diocese of Linköping (Church ...

, Sweden. Malmen is where Baron

Carl Cederström Friherre Carl Gustav Alexander Cederström (5 March 1867 – 29 June 1918) was a pioneering Swedish aviator, known as "the flying Baron". Biography He was born on 5 March 1867 to Anders Cederström and Maria Cecilia Wennerström in Södertä ...

, nicknamed the "Flyer Baron" founded his flying school in 1912. Malmen Airbase is home to the Royal Swedish Airschool operating SAAB 105 (SK60) jet trainers. Along with the

Swedish Army Museum The Swedish Army Museum ( sv, Armémuseum) is a museum of military history located in the district of Östermalm in Stockholm. It reopened in 2002 after a long period of closure, and was awarded the title of the best museum of Stockholm in 2005. ...

(

Armémuseum The Swedish Army Museum ( sv, Armémuseum) is a museum of military history located in the district of Östermalm in Stockholm. It reopened in 2002 after a long period of closure, and was awarded the title of the best museum of Stockholm in 2005. It ...

) in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

, Flygvapenmusem constitutes the government agency ''Statens försvarshistoriska museer'' ("Swedish Museums of the Defence Forces").

History

The museum’s collection of artifacts includes aircraft, engines, instruments and uniforms. The museum has a knowledge centre (faktarum), with library and archives, containing literature, periodicals, plans, photographs and personal files relating to aviation. The museum is part of the

National Swedish Museums of Military History National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

, a government agency. The establishment of the Swedish Air Force Museum was also aided by the Östergötland Society for Aviation History (ÖFS). Today, ÖFS acts as a support organisation for the museum, and actively works at tasks such as the restoration of aircraft. The museum has been in existence since 1984, and served both as the Östgöta Wing squadron museum and a storage building in Ryd. The inauguration of the museum in 1984 marked the beginning of a public aviation museum at Malmen – the cradle of Swedish aviation. In 1989, the museum underwent an additional expansion with a second exhibition hall, enabling it to exhibit a large collection of aircraft from the decade following 1910 to today’s

JAS 39 Gripen The Saab JAS 39 Gripen (; English: ''griffin'') is a light single-engine multirole fighter aircraft manufactured by the Swedish aerospace and defense company Saab AB. The Gripen has a delta wing and canard configuration with relaxed stabilit ...

Design and facilities

In 2010 the museum had a major expansion and rebuild. The exhibitions are now divided in themes, for example: 1. Pioneers in aviation, describing the early developments in Swedish aviation history in the period 1910–1926. 2. Between the wars, describing the establishment of the

Swedish Airforce The Swedish Air Force ( sv, Svenska flygvapnet or just ) is the air force branch of the Swedish Armed Forces. History The Swedish Air Force was created on 1 July, 1926 when the aircraft units of the Army and Navy were merged. Because of the e ...

and the early developments of the Swedish aviation industry in the period 1926–1939. 3. The Second World War, when the

increased in size and the first

SAAB Saab or SAAB may refer to: Brands and enterprises * Saab Group, a Swedish aerospace and defence company, formerly known as SAAB, and later as Saab AB ** Datasaab, a former computer company, started as spin off from Saab AB * Saab Automobile, a fo ...

planes joined in the period 1939–1945. 4. Aviation technology 5. Sweden during the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

, showing preparations made in case of war in the period of the 1950s–1980s. The various exhibitions including the displayed aircraft are shown on three levels in the museum. There are two large hangar sized exhibition halls with a large number of aircraft and a third downstairs showing the

DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper version ...

that was shot down in 1952 and eventually found in 2003. After interim storage, the plane was placed in its final location at the Swedish Air Force Museum on 13 May 2009.

Awards

The Air Force Museum won the award for the 2011 Swedish Museum of the year. The Air Force Museum also won the prize for the 2010 Exhibition of the Year. The 2011 Swedish Museum of the Year award is sponsored by the Swedish chapter of the International Council of Museums (ICOM) and the Association of Swedish Museums. The award for the 2010 Exhibition of the Year is sponsored by FORUM for exhibitors.

Collection

Swedish Airforce J34 Hawker Hunter Jetfighter

A German built

Junkers Ju 86 The Junkers Ju 86 was a German monoplane bomber and civilian airliner designed in the early 1930s, and employed by various air forces on both sides during World War II. The civilian model Ju 86B could carry ten passengers. Two were delivered to S ...

twin-engined bomber (the only one left in the world), and a wide range of

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

, American,

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and Swedish-made aircraft (among others) reveal the diversity of types flown by the Swedish Air Force including aircraft from every stage of Swedish military aviation. Noteworthy exhibition objects from the pioneering days of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

include an Albatros B.IIa (Sk 1 or Ö2) trainer, as well as

Nieuport Nieuport, later Nieuport-Delage, was a French aeroplane company that primarily built racing aircraft before World War I and fighter aircraft during World War I and between the wars. History Beginnings Originally formed as Nieuport-Duplex in ...

and Bréguet combat aircraft. All service aircraft of significance from the post-war years are exhibited, from the

Saab J 29 The Saab 29 ''Tunnan'', colloquially ''Flygande tunnan'' or just ''Tunnan'' ( en, "The flying barrel", "The barrel"),. is a Swedish fighter that was designed and manufactured by Saab in the late 1940s. It was the second turbojet-powered comba ...

"Flying Barrel", a sturdy fighter of the 1950s, to the contemporary 4th generation multirole fighter

. Recently, new exhibitions have been added, based around the salvaged ''Tp 79'' (Swedish Air Force designation for

C-47 The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota (Royal Air Force, RAF, Royal Australian Air Force, RAAF, Royal Canadian Air Force, RCAF, Royal New Zealand Air Force, RNZAF, and South African Air Force, SAAF designation) is a airlift, military transport ai ...

)

ELINT Signals intelligence (SIGINT) is intelligence-gathering by interception of ''signals'', whether communications between people (communications intelligence—abbreviated to COMINT) or from electronic signals not directly used in communication ( ...

aircraft, shot down by a Soviet

MiG-15 The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 (russian: Микоя́н и Гуре́вич МиГ-15; USAF/DoD designation: Type 14; NATO reporting name: Fagot) is a jet fighter aircraft developed by Mikoyan-Gurevich for the Soviet Union. The MiG-15 was one of ...

in 1952. There is also a Saab 39 Gripen simulator in the museum. Just outside the museum an

English Electric Canberra The English Electric Canberra is a British first-generation, jet-powered medium bomber. It was developed by English Electric during the mid- to late 1940s in response to a 1944 Air Ministry requirement for a successor to the wartime de Havil ...

(Tp 52),

Vickers Varsity The Vickers Varsity is a retired British twin-engined crew trainer operated by the Royal Air Force from 1951 to 1976. Design and development The Varsity was developed by Vickers and based on the Viking and Valetta to meet Air Ministry Speci ...

(Tp 82) and

Douglas C-47A Skytrain The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota (Royal Air Force, RAF, Royal Australian Air Force, RAAF, Royal Canadian Air Force, RCAF, Royal New Zealand Air Force, RNZAF, and South African Air Force, SAAF designation) is a airlift, military transport ai ...

(Tp79) are on display but not yet fully restored. Recently, there was also a Hunting-Percival Pembroke (Tp83) outside the museum. However, this has been moved for restoration.

Displayed in the main exhibition halls

* Sk 1 Albatros (Albatros B.II) * HKP 3C (Agusta Bell 204) * Breguet Type IV U.1 *

Bristol Bloodhound The Bristol Bloodhound is a British ramjet powered surface-to-air missile developed during the 1950s. It served as the UK's main air defence weapon into the 1990s and was in large-scale service with the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the forces of f ...

II (Rb 68) * Sk 25 (Bücker Bü 181 Bestmann) * B 16 (Caproni Ca.313) * Tp 47 (Canadian Vickers PBV Canso) * J 28A (Vampire) * J 33 (De Havilland Venom NF.51) * Sk 9 (De Havilland DH. 60T Moth Trainer) * Donnet-Lévêque L II *

Douglas DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper version ...

(Tp79) Wreckage * FFVS J 22-2 * Fiat J11 (CR42) * S 14 (Fiesler Fi 156 Storch) * Sk 12 (Focke Wulf Fw 44J Stieglitz) * S 6A (Fokker C.V E) * FVM Ö1 Tummelisa * J 8A (Gloster Gladiator Mk.II) * B 4A (ASJA built Hawker Hart) * J 34 (Hawker Hunter Mk.50) * Heinkel HD 35 (Sk 5) * B 3C-2 (Junkers Ju 86K) * HKP 4B (Boeing-Vertol KV-107) * HKP 9A (MBB Bo 105 ) *

Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 (russian: Микоя́н и Гуре́вич МиГ-15; USAF/DoD designation: Type 14; NATO reporting name: Fagot) is a jet fighter aircraft developed by Mikoyan-Gurevich for the Soviet Union. The MiG-15 was one of ...

* M1 (Nieuport IV) *

North American NA-16 The North American Aviation NA-16 was the first trainer aircraft built by North American Aviation, and was the beginning of a line of closely related North American trainer aircraft that would eventually number more than 17,000 examples, notab ...

(Sk 14) * J 26 (North American P-51D Mustang) * J 1 (Phönix 122/Phönix C.I) * Sk 10 (Raab RK-26 Tigerschwalbe) * J 20 (Reggiane Re.2000 Falco) * Saab S 17BL * Saab B 18B * Saab J 21A-3 * Saab A 21R * Saab S 29C * Saab A 32A Lansen * Saab J 35D Draken * Saab AJS 37 Viggen *

Saab JAS 39 Gripen The Saab JAS 39 Gripen (; English: ''griffin'') is a light single-engine multirole fighter aircraft manufactured by the Swedish aerospace and defense company Saab AB. The Gripen has a delta wing and canard configuration with relaxed stabilit ...

* Saab SK 60A *

Saab 210 The Saab 210 is an approximately 70% scale research prototype for the double- delta configuration of the Saab 35 Draken supersonic fighter. Although never officially named anything but Draken by Saab, it soon became known by its unofficial nicknam ...

* J 9 (Seversky EP-106) * HKP 2 (Aerospatialle Alouette II) * S 31 (Supermarine Spitfire PR.XIX) *

Thulin G The Thulin G was a Swedish military reconnaissance aircraft built in the late 1910s. Design and development The Thulin G was a two-seat biplane of conventional configuration derived from the Albatros B.II that seated the observer and the pilot ...

* Hkp 1 (Vertol 44A) * AB Flygindustri Se-104 (DFS Weihe)

External display

* TP 79 (Douglas C-47) *

TP 52 The Transpac 52 (TP52) is a class of yacht used for competitive 52 Super Series yacht racing, and the Audi MedCup previously, besides the world championship of the class. The class is recognised by the International Sailing Federation which en ...

(English Electric Canberra T11) * Tp 82 (Vickers Varsity)

In storage or under restoration

* HKP 3C (Agusta Bell 204) * HKP 6A x3 (Agusta Bell 206) * HKP 6B (Agusta Bell 206) * Tp 45 (Beechraft C-45) * Sk 25 (Bücker Bü 181 Bestmann) * Tp 46 (DeHaviland DH.104 Dove) * Sk 11A ( ASJA built De Havilland DH.82 Tiger Moth) * J 28B (DeHaviland Vampire FB.5) * J 28C (DeHaviland Vampire T.55) * Fpl 53 (Dornier Do 27) * Douglas Skyraider AEW1 * Gloster Meteor T Mk.7 * HKP 5B (Schweizer 296C) * HKP 4A (Boeing-Vertol KV-107) * Sk 15A (Klemm Kl 35) * Lim-1 *

Macchi M.7 The Macchi M.7 was an Italian single-seat fighter flying boat designed by Alessandro Tonini and built by Macchi. A modified version of the M.7, the M.7bis won the Schneider Trophy in 1921. Development The M.7 was similar to the earlier M.5 ...

* Fpl 801 (Malmö Flygindustri MFI-9B) * Fpl 54 (MFI-10C Vipan) * MFI-15 * Sk 16A (Noorduyn AT-16 Harvard) * Tp 78 (Noorduyn Norseman) * Tp 83 (Percival P.66 Pembroke) * Saab J 29B * Saab J 29F * Saab S 32C * Saab J 32E Lansen x2 * Saab J 32B Lansen x2 * Saab S 35E Draken x2 * Saab J 35F Draken * Saab J 35J Draken * Saab SK 35C Draken * Saab AJ 37 Viggen * Saab JA 37 Viggen * Saab SK 37 Viggen * Saab Sk 50 Safir x2 * Saab Sk 50B Safir * Saab SK 60B * SK 61 (Scottish Aviation Bulldog) x3 * SNCAC NC.701 Martinet * P1 (Sparmann S1A) * TP 85 (Sud Aviation Caravelle) * TF-35 * G 101 (Stamer Lippisch Zögling) * AB Flygplan Se-102 (Grunau Baby) * AB Flygplan Se-103 (DFS Kranich II)

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

Swedish Air Force Museum
{{authority control Air force museums Aerospace museums in Sweden Military and war museums in Sweden National museums of Sweden Museums in Östergötland County Linköping Garrison