de Haviland Experiences
The de Havilland Aircraft Museum is the only museum in the world to have three de Havilland Mosquitos on display. Salisbury Hall, the location of the museum, is where this iconic aircraft was designed and the prototypes built. The very first of these unique and exceptional aircraft is one of our exhibits – standing just 30 metres from the place where she was built.
Mosquito Cockpit Experiences
We are pleased to announce that we are now able to offer a limited number of unique opportunities for visitors to sit in one of these iconic aircraft.
Guided by one of the museum’s experts you will learn about the history of your chosen DH98 Mosquito, its special construction, the many variants of the aircraft and some of their most famous exploits. You will be invited to sit in the pilot’s seat and your guide will explain the controls and the operational considerations faced by the men who flew them. Access to the aircraft is by means of ladders or steps, the hatches are quite small and necessitate the use of hands and knees to gain entry. Please dress accordingly.
You should allow up to two hours for your experience.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
- Experiences are only available on a Thursday, Friday or Saturday and are limited to just one per week or, in the case of the totally unique First Prototype, to just one per month.
- Experiences are available only through the purchase of an ADVANCED BOOKING VOUCHER (valid for redemption for 12 months from the date of purchase).
- We require a minimum of TWO WEEKS NOTICE of suitable dates so that we can make sure that an experienced guide is available for your experience.
Link Trainer Experiences
Experience what it was like for Second World War pilots to learn flying skills in an operational LINK trainer.
The Link Trainer was created in 1929 out of the need for a safe way to teach new pilots how to fly by instruments.
Ed Link used his knowledge of pumps, valves and bellows gained at his father's Link Piano and Organ Company to create a flight simulator that responded to the pilot's controls and gave an accurate reading on the included instruments. Link Trainers were produced between the early 1930s and early 1950s and during World War II, they were used as a key pilot training aid by almost every combatant nation.
More than 500,000 US pilots were trained on Link simulators, as were pilots of nations as diverse as Australia, Canada, Germany, United Kingdom, Israel, Japan, Pakistan, and the USSR.
Now it’s your opportunity get into the LINK cockpit and fly this historic simulator!
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
- The flight experience is only available to those 18 or over.
- Due to the age of the equipment and the confined cockpit space a degree of agility is required of the pilot, so we need to implement a weight limit of 16st for anyone flying as we find that the Link cannot operate correctly above that limit.
- Our instructors reserve the right to terminate the experience at any time to ensure the safety of the pilot or serviceability of the equipment.
- Please note that the Link is located in an unheated building and the equipment cannot operate below a certain temperature. Unfortunately this means that the Link experience may not be available during the winter when temperatures fall below 16 degrees C
