State Aviation Museum of Ukraine named after. OK. Antonov is the largest historical and technical museum not only in our country, but throughout Eastern Europe. It was inaugurated in 2003 on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of world aviation and the 80th anniversary of the National Aviation University. The museum is located on the territory of the former aviation training base (UTB) of KIIGA (now NAU), and the aircraft assigned to it became the core of the collection of civil aviation.
The museum’s exhibition is in constant development – from the initial 33 exhibits it has grown to more than 90 aircraft, helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles that were in service with the USSR Air Force and independent Ukraine, or were operated in the civil air fleet. Over the years of its existence, GMA has become a center of culture and leisure at the state level, which was visited by more than a million Kiev residents and guests of the city.
Another area is samples of aviation weapons and UAVs, as well as an exhibition of aircraft engines. The museum’s natural collections include designs from almost all leading aviation design bureaus of the Soviet period – Tupolev, Yakovlev, Ilyushin, Antonov, Sukhoi, Mikoyan-Gurevich, Kamov, Mil, Beriev, as well as replicas from the early 20th century. In turn, the collections are formed both according to the purpose of the aircraft and according to their affiliation with individual design bureaus. The exception is KB. A.N. Tupolev – a separate “Backfire Collection” is highlighted here, which includes missile-carrying bombers of the Tu-22M family.
The collections of aircraft from the Mikoyan and Gurevich Design Bureaus, as well as helicopters from the M.L. Mil Design Bureau, presented in the museum collections are among the most complete in the world. The now rare MiG-15UTI and Mi-1M are also on display here. And in terms of the number of experimental and individual aircraft, the museum is the second largest collection in the CIS – only the Russian Monino has more. In Zhulyany you can see the first experimental Il-86, the second experimental/first production Il-18, the first production Tu-104, the pre-production Tu-134, as well as the Tu-22M0 from the experimental series and others. Each of these machines is also the oldest example of its type that has survived to this day.
The sources of constant replenishment of the museum’s exhibits were airfields where decommissioned aircraft were preserved – historical evidence of the development of domestic aviation. These machines were brought into exposition condition through the efforts of Ukrainian aviation industry enterprises, after which they took their place at the site in Zhulyany. On many of the aircraft presented in the museum, the basic systems are still operational. In particular, all electronics function properly on such machines, and even relatively recently engines were started on them. Thanks to this, the interest of guests in visiting the pilot cabins of the Il-62 aircraft and the Mi-8 helicopter does not subside, because anyone can sit at the controls.
A special flavor of visiting the museum is given by the close proximity of the existing airport “Kyiv” (Zhulyany), the runway of which runs 100 meters behind a transparent fence. From here, takeoff and landing make an unforgettable impression on the audience.
From the moment of its foundation to the present day, many airplanes and helicopters have replaced each other on the territory of UATB KIIGA (NAU). Among them there were many unique machines worthy of taking the best places in the exhibition of any aviation museum in the world. Ironically, they all died right here – in Zhulyany – sent for scrap metal in strict accordance with the requirement of the USSR State Planning Committee for the delivery of non-ferrous metals. As soon as, for various reasons, the aircraft became unsuitable for teaching students, it was awaiting disposal. Thus, rare samples of experimental aircraft were lost – Tu-110 USSR-5600, experimental Tu-104G (Tu-16G) USSR-L5411, second flight prototype of Il-62 USSR-06176 (003), prototype Tu-124 USSR-45000 and others .
In the early 1990s, the KIIGA training airfield was exposed to the most natural, and at the same time the most destructive processes – the influence of time. Over the course of a whole decade, the planes lost their former appearance and fell into disrepair, and the airfield itself was overgrown with wild grass. During this period, the territory of the future museum gradually turned into an aviation cemetery.
The situation changed radically only in 2003, after, according to a resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, it was decided to create a State Aviation Museum on the basis of UATB. Surprisingly, just 3 months before the opening of the new museum, its future exhibits had not yet been touched by the hands of restorers. In an extremely short time, having organized broad cooperation with dozens of aviation enterprises throughout the country, we managed to prepare the museum for the opening, which took place on September 30, 2003.
Where is the State Aviation Museum of Ukraine named after Antonov?
Medovaya street, 1
(044) 451-83-14
Wed-Sun (April-October): 10:00-19:00
Wed-Sun (November-March): 10:00-17:00
Mon-Tue: days off