Opening of the Air Force Museum

This Saturday, at 11:00, the Air Force Museum will be opening its gates in the new location at Pipera. Is anyone coming?

What is the exact adress?

A few days ago,I saw an airplane in a yard near Hotel Caro at the intersection of Alexandru Serbanescu and Barbu Vacarescu.

Edited: Does anyone have the EXACT location of the new museum ? We will go there around 10:30 but we don't know where.

This post has been edited by D13-th_Mytzu on March 13, 2006 12:06 pm

My worklpace is between B. Vacarescu and Floreasca but i don't know were is the museum, please someone tell me.
From 5 ("tramvai") i seen one plane in cammo colours, something lke an IAR 8XX, i don't know exactly, but i think it was on Serbanescu street.

Iama

It is near Hotel Caro (fabrica de glucoza). From Aurel Vlaicu metro station, take the tram no. 5 one station towards Stefan cel Mare. I don't recall how many stations you need to go with 5 from Stefan cel Mare, but the Hotel is visible from the street.

Well it's not there!
I just talked with Nicolae Traian,and he seems to know thge place but I couldn't understand exactly where it is.
The idea is that NT wasn't for many years in that area and the place has changed a lot during last years.
I have no idea where to go...

So, where it is?

Iama

Where mr. Antoniu said it is: Sos. Fabrica de Glucoza.

Source: http://www.roaf.ro/roias/ro/Program_Muzeu.html

At that link you have the list of the activities taking place there tommorow.

So? Who's comming tommorow? I am trying to be there around 10:30.

Not many turned up today for the museum's opening, but enough. The official speeches were short and so was the religious service. Afterwards, the minister of defence, the Air Force brass and the press went in and on to the book launches and the free food. Thus, the "normal people" like us could visit the museum without problems (the SPP was kind of annoying with their clearing the path for the minister to walk in).

The new location is defiantely much more suitable than the old one at otopeni. First of all they have hangars that can house all the aircraft. After many years of staying outside in the wind and rain, they can finally be preserved properly. It is also much closer to the city, than Otopeni and thus more accessible to the public. Hopefully thei PR will improve in the future if they get more visitors.

From what I understood the setting up of the exibits is far from being finished and I sicnerly hope it is true, because what I have seen is pretty sloppy, when compared with the National Military Museum. It is true that they probably did not have the necessaryh funds, but still there were some things that weren't expensive and that coiuld have been done. For example, there are many portraits of aviators, but no name under the photos. I mean not everyone knows that the image depicts the top WW2 fighter ace, unless they have some knowledge on the subject. Visitors aren't supposed to be "connaisseurs". And practically all the photos on the walls could use a caption. Also, there aren't enough photos on the walls. The museum has a large archive of images and I am sure that they practically cover the hangars with them. And a 30x20 cm phot is only 3 RON. Not a huge sum.

I can understand that there weren't enough money to buy/make quality dummy models to wear the uniforms and they had to settle with cheap ones taken probably from a surplus sale at Unirea or that they did not have the money to install new and clean windows for the exhibits, but some photos with captions could have been added.

Also I found the museum to be to poorly illuminated and that is one of the reasons the photos did not turn out so well (I didn't bring a tripod). Maybe the curtains that covered the windows could have been removed.

The IAR-80 replica has been repainted and is now s/n 112. Cantacuzino can give more details on it.

Hopefully, with time and money the museum can be improved and can climb up closer to the level of the National Military Museum.

Two soldiers of the 30th Guard Regiment stand by the statued of Traian Vuia. Today we cellebrate 100 years from his 12 meter flight at Montesson - the first aircraft in the world to have taken off by its own means, six months before Santos-Dumont

A view from the balcony, where I could place the camera on the edge and set a longer exposure time. It was in fact much darker inside.



The aircraft in the foreground is a Zlin 226(?) Trener. Note the IAR-80 in the background.

The replica of the Vuia no. 1

A model of the Vlaicu no. 2, hanging from the ceiling