Brief history – Queensland Air Museum.
The museum was founded in 1974 when members of the Queensland Branch of the Aviation Historical Society of Australia purchased their first aircraft, a GAF Canberra Mk 20 designated A84-225. This aircraft can be seen in our Hangar 2 at the museum.
Originally located at Kuraby Pioneer Valley Park, in June 77 when the park closed the Canberra was located to a temporary site leased at Nudgee.
The museum expanded rapidly with the addition of a Meteor, two Sea Venoms (WZ910, WZ898) and a Vampire A79-828.
Yet another forced move found the museum relocated to Brisbane Airport in April 1980, before high rental demands made staying at the airport location unviable. When land became available at Caloundra airport, courtesy of Landsborough Shire Council, it was an offer too good to refuse especially when the offer included a modern hangar. The museum consequently moved to Caloundra in 1986.
The current site has expanded from its initial one hectare to the current two hectares with the addition of Hangar 2 in 2004.
Over 94 historically significant aircraft have been sourced, restored, rebuilt, maintained and displayed to our visitors since those early years. Our volunteers have played a key role in making the museum the largest in Australia with a divergent mix of military and civilian aircraft. Currently we are exhibiting around 80 aircraft.
Queensland Air Museum offers a unique experience for all our visitors who are seeking a cultural and historic tourism experience with a broad appeal to all ages and backgrounds. Our offering is unique; there are not many museums that allow visitors to get up this close and personal to the displays.
Our volunteers, driven by the passion that is encompassed in the vision statement of “Preserving Australia’s Aviation Heritage” are constantly looking at ways of improving the visitor experience to attract a wider audience.
For more information about Queensland Air Museum please follow the link below.
