Interesting critique from accross the Atlantic Ocean

One again the Brits step up to design perfectly awful buildings to win awards, but are perfectly horrible for displaying aircraft.

First it was the American Air Museum at Duxford. It won plenty of design awards, but is totally impractical as an aircraft museum. If the open end is an expanding parabola there is no way you can enlarge the building to accommodate an expanding collection (must go higner and wider to extend the front wall. Result: everything is crowded in. Just go to the other end of Duxford to see a proper hangar that can be enlarged as the number of aircraft inside increases.

Next, the Cosford disaster. I have not actually seen the interior in person, but the photos show a drab aluminum overhead and aircraft rather crowded together or hanging from odd angles. Another building designed to win awards vice displaying aircraft.

In the US we have the Natl Musuem of the Marine Corps, where a lot of aircraft are hanging well away from a decent viewing distance, or the USAF Museum with black painted interiors to represent “caves as hangars”.

I wonder what the residents of the local housing estates at Hendon think about this monstrosity about to loom over their neighborhood (or should that be neighbourhood).

Bill

probably explains why the Battle has been at Cosford so long – they’ve been modifying it so it can be hung in the spiral to represent the role of the AASF in the Battle of France prior to the start of the Battle of Britain

Why does this fill me with dread – I think it’s the planes on string concept – although I was impressed with the U-H Centre – it has a completely different feel to AirSpace or the origami hangar at Cosford – perhaps it’s the size thats the difference

thanks Bruce – n/t

n/t