For the 34th European Heritage Days, numerous museums, cultural spaces and historical sites are opening their doors, offering a rich variety of aviation-themed events over the weekend.
The flagship of aerospace history, the Air and Space Museum, is offering many guided tours of famous aircraft on Saturday, September 16 and Sunday, September 17, 2017, for example the Mercure or Concorde. There is also a series of events and workshops for all ages (“But how does it fly?”, “The airplane of tomorrow”, “Aerospace jobs box”, etc.). The museum is holding conferences on the air transport professions and the aerospace industry (Saturday, September 16 only).
If you’d like to discover the everyday workings of an airport, the Maison de l’Environnement is offering a series of guided tours of Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport: a great chance to get behind the scenes of Europe’s second busiest airport.
The Safran Aerospace Museum in Seine-et-Marne allows visitors to get behind the controls of many airplane and helicopter simulators, or take part in practical workshops (water rockets and motorized paper planes).
The Espace Air Passion light aviation museum at Angers-Loire airport is organizing a hands-on tour of its collection of old aircraft, offering the chance to discover its storage areas and restoration workshops.
Finally, young visitors to the new 14-18 Battles of the Somme museum in Thiepval in the Somme can take inspiration from its replica of Georges Guynemer’s Spad VII, to create a cardboard airplane.
Many other tours and activities connected to aviation are available all over France. Feel free to consult the official interactive map on the European Heritage Days website.
34th European Heritage Days, Saturday, September 16 and Sunday, September 17, 2017.