IAF to build country's first aerospace museum

The Delhi based Western Air Command of the Indian Air Force (IAF) is building an Aerospace museum on a 50 acre land acquired from the government near the domestic airport here, the first of its kind to be built in India. With plans to complete the project before the Commonwealth Games 2010, the museum is being built at an approximate cost of Rupees 100 crore, with plans underway to shift the existing Air Force memorial at Palam in the museum's premises. The foundation stone of the museum will be laid on November 30 by the Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal S P Tyagi. The state-of-the-art museum being built on the lines of the Smithsonian Museum of Washington, will have audio-visual presentations of the functionality of the various aircraft presently operational in the IAF as well as the ones phased out of service. Aircraft of all types will be on display with a brief literature of their history and operational capabilities available. Old phased out aircraft will be hooked on to the roof, for a live in-the-air demonstration.

Entry and exit to all the aircraft on display will be made available for the spectators. Amongst the various stalls there will be a section dedicated to the Marshal of the IAF, Arjan Singh, with his brief history, achievements and photographs along with an e-mail facility for spectators to ask him questions and receive direct answers from him. To make the museum more interactive and lively for the common public, there will be a runway inside the museum to give the people a feel of an airport, besides facilities for children like a picnic spot and special facilities for physical challenged spectators. ith a thrust on presenting scientific facts with an aim to educate spectators, the museum also plans to incorporate the history of all the wars fought by the IAF along with the details of all their squadrons, their roles and activities being undertaken, with a motive to create awareness among the common public. There will also be a section on the activities of the Air Force Wives Welfare Association (AFWWA).

Group Captain R.Vijay Kumar in-charge of the museum project revealed that an Expression of Interest (EoI) was sent across the country to attract the best talent for the design of the museum, for which 20 architects responded. The phase I of the architect design was completed and now the second phase of the concept design and discussions would take place, he added. The committee for the museum construction comprises IAF personnel, engineers from the private sector, the Director of the National Museum and members of the Architect Association of India. With simulators for visitors of all kinds of aircraft in the IAF's inventory, the museum sure seems to be a hit among spectators and notch up tourism revenue, considering the forthcoming Commonwealth Games.

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