The Museum of Flying

Originally founded in 1974 by Donald Douglas Jr. as the Douglas Museum and Library located on the South side of the Santa Monica Airport, the Museum migrated to the North side of the Airport and reopened as the Museum of Flying in April of 1989. The Museum gradually grew to a collection of over 50 vintage aircraft with many still in flight ready condition.

The anchor aircraft for the Museum was the Douglas World Cruiser, "New Orleans" which made the first circumnavigation of the globe along with its sister ship, "Chicago", in 1924. The Chicago now sits at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air & Space Museum. The museum's collection of artifacts, exhibits, and aviation art chronicle the development of aviation in Southern California.

Over the next several year's the museum played host to many historic and memorable special events and activities, including "A Walk on the Moon" in 1999 in which 7 NASA lunar astronauts were present and honored for their advancement in the discovery of space and the moon. In 2000, the museum held the 60th Commemorative Anniversary of the Battle of Britain. Attendees at this event witnessed first-hand accounts of this epic air battle, live and in person from several RAF and Luftwaffe pilots who joined us for this milestone occasion.

The Museum was forced to temporarily close in July of 2002 due to economic challenges. Since that time, Museum officials have been in discussion with the City of Santa Monica on a suitable new location at the Santa Monica Airport. Recently, the Museum executed a lease agreement with the City of Santa Monica for the leasehold at 3100 Airport Avenue. The new Museum expansion and remodeling project is estimated to cost nearly $2 million. Construction and the Capital Campaign to support it are in progress. Please support the construction effort by making a donation.