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Roger writes:
UKP13 admission, free parking; open 10-4.30 Wed-Sun winter, 10-5.30 summer
Devoted to the history of the Fleet Air Arm, with 30-40 static aircraft on display (and many more in the reserve collection, which is opened once a year or so), some ship models, and informational posters. I went round in about two hours, neither dawdling nor hurrying; I could happily have spent longer.
The overall feel is that of a site which last had a lot of money for updates in the 1980s, and has rather been starved of cash since - much like the Fleet Air Arm itself, really. The walk through a carrier mockup (starting with the most realistic helicopter simulator I've ever experienced - dark, cramped, noisy, and you can't see what's going on) is quite nicely done, but it's still set aboard Ark Royal in the 1970s, with lots of illuminated buttons and talk about flying Buccaneers and Phantoms. There's some effort towards interactivity, but mostly it's a decent static museum.
All indoors, quite a few steps, though lift access is available. The usual uninteresting cafe, but (open-air) picnic space is provided. Certainly worth a visit if you're in the area, but I'm not convinced it would be worth the journey from London on its own.


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