This looks likely to be a good year for National Museums Scotland (NMS). The organisation manages four museums, and its Edinburgh mothership, the National Museum of Scotland, opens 10 new galleries this summer as the culmination of a £14.1m project.
More recently, on 25 March this year, following a £3.6m development, NMS’s National Museum of Flight unveiled two transformed second world war hangars.
Flying scares me. Previous visits to this museum in East Lothian have taught me that grounded aircraft are less terrifying, but also that aircraft hangars can be cold, soulless buildings. My husband and sons, aged four and two, are committed transport enthusiasts, however; and so a family visit was planned.
The two hangars represent two distinct themes – civil and military aviation. Visitors to each hangar are welcomed by simple introductory text. Even with two excited pre-schoolers desperate to see the planes, this text was concise enough for me to grasp the overarching theme.
As we entered the first hangar the boys gasped at the sight before them. I gasped at the unfamiliar sensation of warmth. The environmentally friendly ground-source underfloor heating system is a welcome addition to the visitor experience.
Connecting flight
The display of aircraft, one of the most significant aviation collections in Europe, is striking. The civil collection comprises hang-gliders, microlights and various light aircraft, including a Druine Turbulent, designed to be made by amateurs, that was built in a Scottish home in the 1960s. The military collection includes a Hawker Siddeley Harrier jump jet (the world’s first vertical take-off combat aeroplane) and the iconic Spitfire, which together steal the show. A viewing platform, complete with accessible lift, in the military hangar allows for an impressive overview of this magnificent collection.
Although each hangar has a distinct theme, there is a single overarching approach to the interpretation – a combination of concisely written panels and touchscreen interactives exploring the design, technology, people and history of the individual aircraft on display. This caters well for different levels of interest as well as providing a consistency of approach that encourages familiarity, confidence and understanding – all important ingredients in the facilitation of an enjoyable and engaging experience for visitors.
One of the main aims of the interpretation is to present a tangible, personal connection to the aircraft on display. Most of the touchscreens contain interviews with people whose lives have been affected by flight. These stories fulfil the exhibition’s aim, helping to bring the aircraft to life, with the help of personal items that are on display for the first time, such as log books and uniforms. The military hangar contains some more emotion-laden items, including a cold war escape map printed on silk (for pilots to sew into their uniform seams in case they were shot down, to find their way back to friendly territory), and the chillingly familiar striped concentration camp uniform.
The military hangar has the additional interpretive device of a timeline that puts the various conflicts in their historical context. Each entry, including a date and two short facts, is accompanied by an image and a quotation, which again adds a human dimension. The timeline is simple, accessible, personal and effective.
The final layer of interpretation is a series of audiovisual presentations. In the civil aviation hangar these explore the themes “Connecting Communities”, “Flying for Fun” and “Aerial Photography”. Each programme uses film footage and interviews to present a personal perspective on flight and how it affects lives, be it a passionate hobby, a valuable technique or a lifeline for Scotland’s island communities. The presentations are timed so they do not overlap, preventing the cacophony of sound that can result from competing installations.
In between showings, each screen presents a countdown to the next viewing. I would also have liked to see a note of each presentation’s running time. The programmes are short but when a two-year-old is tugging at your trouser leg or trying to board an aircraft, it’s good to know how many snacks you need to provide to allow the required length of relative peace and quiet.
The two audiovisual displays in the military hangar are particularly arresting. Aerial Warfare presents the memories and experiences of pilots and civilians affected by war from 1939-45 as well as more recent conflicts. As I watched my carefree boys zooming around pretending to be aeroplanes, it was particularly poignant to hear a Clydebank Blitz survivor recall thinking, “I’m with my Mum, I’ll be OK.”
Super sonics
The main programme, Fight for the Skies, is presented on a large overhead screen and features film footage of military aircraft used in various conflicts. The aircraft on display are spotlighted as they feature; an effective identification tool as well as serving to bring the collection to life. The audio uses only the sounds of engines and the noise of war, including the haunting air-raid siren. This powerful soundtrack had the whole room mesmerised. The sound of the aircraft is incredible, reverberating around the hangar just as they once roared above raging conflicts, but now sit eerily quiet and motionless.
Although a little old for my pre-schoolers, the impressive displays of aircraft and the main presentation in the military hangar, or “the movie” as my four-year-old called it, provided the biggest “wow factor” for my boys (I include my husband in this).
For me, it was the humorous, moving and tragic human stories, presented through touchscreens and audiovisuals, and the accompanying personal artefacts, that brought these magnificent flying machines to life.
There is something for everyone in these spaces, whether you’re there for a family visit, a social outing or a fact-finding mission.
I left the military hangar in contemplative silence as the words of the late RAF pilot Captain Eric “Winkle” Brown, reverberated in my mind: “It should be the right of humanity to live in peace, but some misguided creatures decide they know better and want to kill others, and it is wrong. Absolutely wrong.” Poignant words in today’s uncertain world.
Mary Stones is an interpretation project manager with the National Trust for Scotland
This Collecting Digital Stories project sought out some of the people who built, designed, used or witnessed the use of our aircraft, collecting their words and combining them with contemporary images and film with which we enriched our interpretation. The stories that emerged from the interviews we conducted influenced the direction of our interpretation.
From the beginning of the project we wanted to tell some of the more challenging stories; for example, the fact that though military aircraft are often the pinnacle of technological achievement, they are designed to attack and destroy resources. The Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet was the fastest aircraft of the second world war but it was built by slave labourers, so their story is told on a digital label in the Military Hangar.
Interviews have been gathered from across Britain, as well as the US and Australia. One highlight was Captain Eric Brown’s visit to the museum last year. As a test pilot he flew more different types of aircraft than anyone else in history. Brown had flown many of the aeroplanes we have in our collection, so his memories were particularly valuable to us.
Sadly, Captain Brown died in February, but visitors to the new hangars have the opportunity to watch our interviews with him on touchscreen labels next to some of the aircraft that he flew.
Adam Love-Rogers is the learning officer at the National Museum of Flight
Main funders Heritage Lottery Fund, £1.3m; Scottish Government, £1.8m
Architect Smith Scott Mullan Associates
Exhibition design Redman Design
Infrastructure and heating Balfour Beatty
Admission MA Members free, Adult £10, concessions £8, child £5 (under 5 free)
More recently, on 25 March this year, following a £3.6m development, NMS’s National Museum of Flight unveiled two transformed second world war hangars.
Flying scares me. Previous visits to this museum in East Lothian have taught me that grounded aircraft are less terrifying, but also that aircraft hangars can be cold, soulless buildings. My husband and sons, aged four and two, are committed transport enthusiasts, however; and so a family visit was planned.
The two hangars represent two distinct themes – civil and military aviation. Visitors to each hangar are welcomed by simple introductory text. Even with two excited pre-schoolers desperate to see the planes, this text was concise enough for me to grasp the overarching theme.
As we entered the first hangar the boys gasped at the sight before them. I gasped at the unfamiliar sensation of warmth. The environmentally friendly ground-source underfloor heating system is a welcome addition to the visitor experience.
Connecting flight
The display of aircraft, one of the most significant aviation collections in Europe, is striking. The civil collection comprises hang-gliders, microlights and various light aircraft, including a Druine Turbulent, designed to be made by amateurs, that was built in a Scottish home in the 1960s. The military collection includes a Hawker Siddeley Harrier jump jet (the world’s first vertical take-off combat aeroplane) and the iconic Spitfire, which together steal the show. A viewing platform, complete with accessible lift, in the military hangar allows for an impressive overview of this magnificent collection.
Although each hangar has a distinct theme, there is a single overarching approach to the interpretation – a combination of concisely written panels and touchscreen interactives exploring the design, technology, people and history of the individual aircraft on display. This caters well for different levels of interest as well as providing a consistency of approach that encourages familiarity, confidence and understanding – all important ingredients in the facilitation of an enjoyable and engaging experience for visitors.
One of the main aims of the interpretation is to present a tangible, personal connection to the aircraft on display. Most of the touchscreens contain interviews with people whose lives have been affected by flight. These stories fulfil the exhibition’s aim, helping to bring the aircraft to life, with the help of personal items that are on display for the first time, such as log books and uniforms. The military hangar contains some more emotion-laden items, including a cold war escape map printed on silk (for pilots to sew into their uniform seams in case they were shot down, to find their way back to friendly territory), and the chillingly familiar striped concentration camp uniform.
The military hangar has the additional interpretive device of a timeline that puts the various conflicts in their historical context. Each entry, including a date and two short facts, is accompanied by an image and a quotation, which again adds a human dimension. The timeline is simple, accessible, personal and effective.
The final layer of interpretation is a series of audiovisual presentations. In the civil aviation hangar these explore the themes “Connecting Communities”, “Flying for Fun” and “Aerial Photography”. Each programme uses film footage and interviews to present a personal perspective on flight and how it affects lives, be it a passionate hobby, a valuable technique or a lifeline for Scotland’s island communities. The presentations are timed so they do not overlap, preventing the cacophony of sound that can result from competing installations.
In between showings, each screen presents a countdown to the next viewing. I would also have liked to see a note of each presentation’s running time. The programmes are short but when a two-year-old is tugging at your trouser leg or trying to board an aircraft, it’s good to know how many snacks you need to provide to allow the required length of relative peace and quiet.
The two audiovisual displays in the military hangar are particularly arresting. Aerial Warfare presents the memories and experiences of pilots and civilians affected by war from 1939-45 as well as more recent conflicts. As I watched my carefree boys zooming around pretending to be aeroplanes, it was particularly poignant to hear a Clydebank Blitz survivor recall thinking, “I’m with my Mum, I’ll be OK.”
Super sonics
The main programme, Fight for the Skies, is presented on a large overhead screen and features film footage of military aircraft used in various conflicts. The aircraft on display are spotlighted as they feature; an effective identification tool as well as serving to bring the collection to life. The audio uses only the sounds of engines and the noise of war, including the haunting air-raid siren. This powerful soundtrack had the whole room mesmerised. The sound of the aircraft is incredible, reverberating around the hangar just as they once roared above raging conflicts, but now sit eerily quiet and motionless.
Although a little old for my pre-schoolers, the impressive displays of aircraft and the main presentation in the military hangar, or “the movie” as my four-year-old called it, provided the biggest “wow factor” for my boys (I include my husband in this).
For me, it was the humorous, moving and tragic human stories, presented through touchscreens and audiovisuals, and the accompanying personal artefacts, that brought these magnificent flying machines to life.
There is something for everyone in these spaces, whether you’re there for a family visit, a social outing or a fact-finding mission.
I left the military hangar in contemplative silence as the words of the late RAF pilot Captain Eric “Winkle” Brown, reverberated in my mind: “It should be the right of humanity to live in peace, but some misguided creatures decide they know better and want to kill others, and it is wrong. Absolutely wrong.” Poignant words in today’s uncertain world.
Mary Stones is an interpretation project manager with the National Trust for Scotland
Focus on: interactives
Visitors to our museum are often impressed by the scale and speed of our aircraft and, before the revamp, much of the information we displayed on object labels was technological. For our two redeveloped hangars however, we have created new touchscreen labels, allowing us to utilise a range of media to tell stories about the people, and the political context, behind our aircraft, as well as design and technology.This Collecting Digital Stories project sought out some of the people who built, designed, used or witnessed the use of our aircraft, collecting their words and combining them with contemporary images and film with which we enriched our interpretation. The stories that emerged from the interviews we conducted influenced the direction of our interpretation.
From the beginning of the project we wanted to tell some of the more challenging stories; for example, the fact that though military aircraft are often the pinnacle of technological achievement, they are designed to attack and destroy resources. The Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet was the fastest aircraft of the second world war but it was built by slave labourers, so their story is told on a digital label in the Military Hangar.
Interviews have been gathered from across Britain, as well as the US and Australia. One highlight was Captain Eric Brown’s visit to the museum last year. As a test pilot he flew more different types of aircraft than anyone else in history. Brown had flown many of the aeroplanes we have in our collection, so his memories were particularly valuable to us.
Sadly, Captain Brown died in February, but visitors to the new hangars have the opportunity to watch our interviews with him on touchscreen labels next to some of the aircraft that he flew.
Adam Love-Rogers is the learning officer at the National Museum of Flight
Project data
Cost £3.6mMain funders Heritage Lottery Fund, £1.3m; Scottish Government, £1.8m
Architect Smith Scott Mullan Associates
Exhibition design Redman Design
Infrastructure and heating Balfour Beatty
Admission MA Members free, Adult £10, concessions £8, child £5 (under 5 free)