What's on at Air Force Museum of New Zealand
Latest from the museum
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.
Book a birthday party
Latest Exhibition
Victory!
It is 80 years since the end of the Second World War.
Our Victory exhibition, upstairs in the atrium, marks this significant milestone in world history, and the story of the RNZAF.
Victory includes images and memories of Victory in Europe (VE) Day and Victory over Japan (VJ) Day which have been sourced from photographs, letters, postcards and personal histories in our collection.
Victory includes insights into how Kiwis celebrated, and how they felt.
Many found it difficult to rejoice after so much loss and suffering.
You’re welcome to come along and learn all about the end of World War Two with us.
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.
Learn More
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.
Learn More
Our Aircraft
Explore AircraftMore to explore
ANZAC POPPY FOR YOU!: Our Anzac Day Service is on at 12pm on Saturday, but we realise not everyone can make it here to our place for the commemoration.
So, if you've got someone in the family whose name is on our Roll of Honour, we'd be happy to get one of our team to place a poppy for you.
Just put the name you would like to remember in the comments below or email communications@airforcemuseum.co.nz, and we'll endeavour to get it done.
Our roll contains the names of more than 4,600 Kiwis who have lost their lives while in the service of the Royal New Zealand Air Force and Allied air forces.
Our Anzac Service will be held at 12pm on 25 April at the Air Force Museum of New Zealand, 45 Harvard Avenue, Wigram, #ANZACDay2026
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Pilot Officer Thomas Tristram (Dene) Fox, 485 Squadron, killed in action 4 April 1942 please. My uncle.
F/Sgt Maurice Roy Haycock, NZ4216224, killed when the Avro Anson (NZ414) he was co-piloting, crashed into Mt Egmont/Taranaki during a training flight. Sep 4,1944. We will remember them 🌹
Please place a poppy for my uncle 404073 Sgt JM Hall whose Wellington was shot down over Holland on the night of May 31, 1942. Another crew member of the aircraft was New Zealander Sgt AN Young who was also killed that night.
Please place poppies for Walter Young McGregor and Jack(John) Dunlop McGregor from his nieces Gill and Janice
Could you please place one for WO Barry (Bazza) Cochrane, taken from us all way to early on behalf of his family and of course all his mates that are military family 😞 Many thanks team.
Catherine Hill
Lest We Forget our Heroes
Lest we forget
Andrew William Clark please.
Thank you
Bob Janek see you there...
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ANZAC DAY SERVICE: You and your whānau are invited to join us at the Air Force Museum of New Zealand to commemorate our national day of remembrance.
The service will begin at 12pm, 25 April, 45 Harvard Ave, Wigram.
All welcome.
Our service is indoors and accessible with plenty of seating and onsite parking. A NZSL interpreter will also be present.
Travelling by bus? The 80, 100 and 5 Yellowline buses have stops a short walk from the museum. ... See MoreSee Less
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TIGER FANS: As soon as our Tiger Moth landed at Westfield Riccarton for its Anzac Day outing, Tiger fans Lawry and Jacquie Hanafin arrived to have a look.
Not only had Lawry – a keen pilot - flown one of the little de Havillands in years gone by, he once tried to win one by flying from Singpore to Christchurch as fast as he could!
Lawry competed in the Singapore to Christchurch Air Race in 1987, and first prize for aviators in his section of the race was magnificent a de Havilland Tiger Moth.
What more could you wish for?
Jacquie also has an interesting family connection to the RNZAF trainer. Her uncle, Bruce Hayman, learned to fly in Tiger Moths during World War Two, one of the more than 7000 RNZAF pilots to do so.
After he learned the basics in the Tiger, Bruce was sent to Canada as part of the Empire Air Training Scheme, to learn to fly more complicated aircraft, before heading to the war in Europe.
Lawry and Jacquie ran their Hanafin’s store at the mall at Westfield Riccarton for 25 years and could honestly say this is the first time they had seen a Tiger Moth in the mall.
If you’d like to learn more about this unique yellow aircraft, get along to our Anzac Day display at @westfieldriccartonnz in Christchurch.
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Beautiful aircraft the Tiger Moth. My Dad did his initial RNZAF pilot training (#15 pilots course) on these aircraft down near Dunedin. 35 years later I was on the P3 crew that won the military devision of the SIN-CHC air race. Second overall. What a super prize.
My dad, Buster Egginton, flew Corsairs up in the Islands for the RNZAF…when my older brother Peter & I caught Hooping Cough, he took us up for a flight in Onerahi, it cured my bro but not me but I can still say I’ve been in a Tiger Moth👍😍(I’m 77 this August)❤️❤️
Bruce Hayman wrote a very good book about some of his war time experience.
Looking good Mum and Dad!
Incredible Lawry and Jacquie Hanafin <3 We're so happy you were able to visit the de Havilland Tiger Moth yesterday.
Awesome display 👏
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