What's on at Air Force Museum of New Zealand
Latest from the museum
Support
Home For Heroes
Join us in building a forever home for New Zealand’s C-130 Hercules and P-3 Orion – icons of service.
For more than half a century, these legendary aircraft carried our nation’s courage across the world – in peace, crisis, and discovery. Now, they need a home worthy of their legacy, where their stories of service, innovation and humanity will continue to inspire.
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Birthday Parties
Mission: Best birthday ever
Zip up a flight suit, grab your dog tags, and dive into a fully hosted birthday “mission”. From air & sea adventures for preschoolers to rescue and cadet challenges for older children. Our Programmes team runs the activities, the children get awesome photo moments (and party bags), and you can add catering through our café.
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Exhibition
The Mighty Hercules
The Mighty Hercules exhibition is on in the Cochrane Gallery upstairs in our atrium. Come and visit and learn all about this extraordinary aircraft.
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Update
Overseas visitor charge
A $15 entry charge was introduced for all international visitors to the Air Force Museum of New Zealand from 31 March 2025. Tickets available online or from our Welcome Desk on arrival.
The charge is required to cover rising costs and to contribute to our new $20 million extension to house the newest members of our collection – our historic Hercules and Orion aircraft.
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Our Aircraft
Explore AircraftMore to explore
TALL TAILS BY NIGHT! Here's a different view of our new Tall Tails display.
Tall Tails features the tail fin and rudders of two national heroes – our Lockheed C-130 Hercules and P-3K2 Orion aircraft.
The aircraft are too large to fit in our storage hangars with their tails on.
So we turned their tails into an exhibition until we can raise the money needed to build them a new home large enough to fit the Hercules and Orion - tails and all.
As you can see, the Hercules and Orion tails are so huge they barely fit in our largest display area – so we’re going to need a bigger museum space!
You can support our Home for Heroes campaign to buildthe a new space here: airforcemuseum.co.nz/donate/
#nzdf #rnzaf #homeforhereoes #talltails #lockheed
#nzdf #rnzaf #homeforhereoes #talltails #lockheed ... See MoreSee Less
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Awesome 👌
REMEMBERING COLIN MARRIOTT, DFM: Margaret Austin, nee Marriott, dropped by to place a poppy next to the name of her uncle, Colin Marriott, who was killed when his Lancaster crashed on 12 May 1944.
Pilot Officer Marriott was only 20 years old and the captain of No. 626 Squadron Lancaster JB409/P2 when it took off just before midnight on 11 May for a raid on the Hasselt railway yards in Belgium.
Another Kiwi, navigator James Henry Barton, was aboard with five other crew.
A German night fighter tracked, attacked and shot down the Lancaster at 1am near
Krabbendijke, the Netherlands. The Lancaster hit a dike and exploded on impact, and no identifiable remains of the seven crew aboard could be recovered.
However, a battle-damaged axe was later recovered from the Lancaster and is on display in our Horizon to Horizon gallery.
Colin was born in Christchurch and was a laboratory technician at the Canterbury Seed Company before he headed away to war.
He’d completed 12 operations and earned the Distinguished Flying Medal before he was lost.
Flight Sergeant James Henry Barton was ā company clerk from Gore and was 21 years old when he died.
Margaret, who lives in North Canterbury, always makes a point of commemorating her uncle Colin when she calls in to our museum.
“We’ve got to remember them, we always remember them,’’ she says.
And she’s right.
#bombercommand #rsa ... See MoreSee Less
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Good for you Margaret. They're not forgotten.
Nice one Margaret his sacrifice was not in vain we enjoy our freedom today because of them I don't take it lightly taken to young may they RIP Lest we forget 🌹
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CHARLES IN STEEL: Christchurch artist and engineer Michael Evenblij has immortalised our Lockheed C-130H Hercules NZ7001 in steel.
We knew our Hercules, affectionately known as Charles, was special, but this makes him even more special!
This one-off has a wingspan of 1m, is an extraordinarily heavy paperweight, and took Michael more hours than he cares to remember to craft out of 3mm thick steel.
It is definitely a one-off.
"I never ever want to make another one,'' he says.
It is for sale from our store. Email shop@airforcemuseum.co.nz for more details. ... See MoreSee Less
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It would look good if it was painted in the original colour of white and have the silver fern like thay were delivered in 1965
Ben Ellis halvsies?
Why not museum buy it..
Tania White my 60th is coming up 😉
3 mm steel ! Wow that is skills.
That is amazing!
Nick de Lautour
Rob Tuttell
It looks amazing 👏
Wow awesome 😎 👌
Brilliant result Michael.. as an ex C130H pilot on 40 Sqn I admire greatly your skills to present this trophy... 👌👌👌
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