Museum Review: Saskatchewan Aviation Museum

 

          Two days ago I had the pleasure of visiting the Saskatchewan Aviation Museum in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. I have communicated with many of the museum personnel often since starting the Wings Of The Prairies project, and have been meaning to visit for quite some time. I originally planned my trip around filming the museum's Aviation Days event, but unfortunately it was canceled and the hotel room couldn't be refunded due to a concert. Thankfully though, my wife and I are coming up on our one year anniversary and used the opportunity to make it into an anniversary trip! Due to my previous discussions with museum personnel, they knew who I was fairly quickly. I was told I could take photos or video of whatever I wanted to... so I did just that and gave myself a self-guided tour. Here's my thoughts about the museum and my first visit.

         Overall, it's a really great museum! I've been to museums where the collections are great but the staff just don't seem to have the passion for them. That's not the case at the Saskatchewan Aviation Museum. The staff are aviation enthusiasts and love flying just as much as I do. There's also aviation museums out there that lean more heavily to civil or military flying, but at the SAM there's a very healthy mix of the two, catering to aviation enthusiasts of all varieties. The museum also offers vintage plane rides, however as of writing only the Tiger Moth is available to book flights in. Also worth mentioning is the museum is very family and child oriented- there's certain aircraft where kids or adults can climb into and let the imagination run wild. Yes, I did climb aboard a few aircraft and had a blast letting my imagination go to the skies! As well as taking lots of photos, I also took a short video of the Tiger Moth at the museum running and taxiing... I didn't have my actual camera I use for filming handy (old DSLRs aren't known for high quality filming) so the quality isn't up to my standard necessarily, but the video is on our YouTube Channel. Better quality videos with the SAM will definitely happen.

          Also worth noting is that unlike a lot of other museums, the SAM does let you get up close with a lot of their artifacts and restoration projects. There's a few different projects in various stages of completion ongoing, but it's really nice to be able to get up close and see the love and care that goes into preserving these historic machines. The one I really enjoyed being up close with was the nose section of an Anson- the Anson is one of my favorite wartime aircraft, and to get up close with a big piece was an awarding experience for me.

          The gift shop of the museum is small, but very tasteful. Inside there's gifts to cater to people of all ages. There's some museums out there where the gift shop is largely geared towards kids or adults, but like everything else in the museum, there's a very healthy balance. There's also second hand books located in the hangar, so if you're looking to grow your book collection like I always am, there could be no better place to do it in Saskatoon for an aviation buff than the SAM. I spent quite a bit of money in the gift shop on apparel, books, and a portrait, and probably will again every visit! 

          Overall, if you're ever in Saskatoon this is a museum you have to go see! If I lived closer, I would work with or volunteer with this museum in a heartbeat. I won't reveal what all they have obviously to not spoil visits for anyone that hasn't been, but it's worth the money! The staff are friendly and approachable, and no matter what era or type of aviation you're into, there's something here for everyone. I'll definitely be coming back as much as I can to make more content with the Saskatchewan Aviation Museum! 

          A huge thank you to the staff at the Saskatchewan Aviation Museum for allowing us to take photos and film. It's thanks to everyone there the passion for flying will be kept alive for years to come. If you'd like to visit the museum, they're located at 5 Hangar Road and open Wednesday to Saturday 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM. If you'd like to rent out the museum for a birthday party or book a flight in their Tiger Moth, visit their website at www.saskaviation.ca.