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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