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Holiday 'Festival of Planes' on display at Aviation Museum of N.H.
Exhibit features more than 1,000 model planes and toy aircraft, plus new 50-foot-long 'Wall of Planes'
LONDONDERRY, N.H. — It's a holiday exhibit designed to make your imagination take flight.
The 'Festival of Planes,' a display of more than 1,000 vintage aviation toys and model aircraft, is now open to the public at the Aviation Museum of New Hampshire.
The walk-through exhibit features aviation-themed toys, models, puzzles, and promotional items from the past 100 years. Themes range from the Wright Brothers to sci-fi favorites as Star Trek, Star Wars, and more.
Also on display are vintage toy aircraft piloted by celebrities including Bugs Bunny, Mickey Mouse, Elmo, and Barbie.
"You'll find everyone from Charles Lindbergh to Buzz Lightyear in our display," said Jeff Rapsis, the Aviation Museum's executive director.
The exhibit, a combination of several collections as well as items from the Aviation Museum's own archive, uses toys and model aircraft to trace the history of flight.
The 'Festival of Planes' is also intended to reconnect visitors to the aviation toys of their childhood.
"For so many kids, their first close encounter with the magic of flight was that model plane under the Christmas tree," Rapsis said. "There's a good chance they'll find it again in our exhibit."
New this year is the 'Wall of Planes,' a series of nine sets of glass shelves stretching 50 feet in length that display many of the museum's high-end and collectible model aircraft.
The models in the 'Wall of Planes' are grouped according to era and purpose. A reference guide enables visitors to look up information about each aircraft on display.
"Our 'Wall of Planes' is amazing just to gaze at, but you can also learn a lot about aviation, history, politics, technology, and more," Rapsis said.
The exhibit also includes a demonstration of working toys.
The Aviation Museum follows all recommended Covid-19 public health protocols. Facial coverings are required, social distancing must be observed, visitors must follow a one-way route, and the museum has reduced its capacity to 24 people.
The walk-through 'Festival of Planes' exhibit is designed to be an immersive experience, complete with Christmas trees, a fireplaced living room, and a starry winter sky filled with model planes flying overhead.
"Our first 'Festival of Planes,' held last year in one corner of our exhibit space, was a hit," Rapsis said. "This year, we decided to extend it to the full museum, in part to space things out to allow room for social distancing," Rapsis said.
The 'Festival of Planes' exhibit is supported by the Top Fun Aviation Museum of Fitchburg, Mass.; Manchester-Boston Regional Airport; Aubin Hardware of Goffstown; and the Cogswell Benevolent Trust.
The main source of toys and models on display is the collection of the Top Fun Aviation Toy Museum, which totals more than 3,000 items and is on loan to the Aviation Museum of N.H.
Other sources include a fleet of hand-made model aircraft built by Howard Becker of Goffstown, N.H. and recently donated to the Aviation Museum; and a collection of pristine Pacific Aircraft collectible models donated in 2019 by Mauro Scali of Londonderry, N.H.
The 'Festival of Planes' exhibit of aviation toys and model aircraft is included with museum admission of $10 per person; $5 children under 13, seniors 65+, veterans/active military. Members and children under age 5, free.
The Aviation Museum is open on Saturday, Dec. 26 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday, Dec. 27 from 1 to 7 p.m., and then Monday through Wednesday, Dec. 28-30, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. to allow families to visit during the holiday vacation week.
The museum is closed Dec. 31 and Jan. 1. After that, the museum is open Fridays and Saturdays 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sundays 1 to 7 p.m.
The Aviation Museum of N.H. is located at 27 Navigator Road, Londonderry, N.H. It can be reached via Exit 1 on Interstate 293 in Manchester and heading south on South Willow Street past the Mall of New Hampshire entrance; then follow the brown "Aviation Museum" directional signs.
No toys or models in the 'Festival of Planes' are for sale, but the Aviation Museum gift shop offers a range of aviation-themed holiday gifts, keepsakes, and mementos.
All proceeds support the Aviation Museum of N.H., a non-profit 501(c)3 tax-exempt organization dedicated to celebrating New Hampshire's role in aviation history and inspiring tomorrow's pioneers, innovators and aerospace professionals.
The 'Festival of Planes' exhibit of aviation toys and model aircraft will be open through Sunday, Jan. 24. For more information, visit www.aviationmuseumofnh.org or call (603) 669-4820
