Tangmere Military Aviation Museum — Attraction in Chichester

This is an excellent and fantastic little Aviation Museum to visit in the Sussex Village of Tangmere with a delightful range of aircraft, artefacts and displays to see. The museum is divided into several halls and these include the Battle of Britain Hall, Middle Hall, Meryl Hansed Memorial Hall and Tangmere Hall and in all these of these Hall you can see different aircraft but also some very interesting stories of airman and woman who have served in the RAF during the different modern historic battles. The Tangmere Hall houses information and exhibits in relation to the history of Tangemere between 1917 and 1979 and you can some Uniforms and medals from the different period of Tangmere's history and see a very informative exhibition about Special SOE Agents and Lysander Pilots in relation to flights to and from Tangmere to Occupied Europe, which is very enlightening and interesting to read about. The Battle of Britain houses information about the critical air battles that took place in Southern Britain In 1940 and you can read some thought provoking and heroic accounts of the RAF Pilots who fought against the Luffewaffe during those key battles and there some interesting artefacts such as remains of a Merlin and Griffon engines, Luffewaffe items, information boards and a searchlight which are all in amazing condition. The Merston Hall is one of the two largest indoor halls and has a lovely of wonderful aircraft on display such as The Hawker Hunter Mk3, The Gloster Meteor F4 and a Prototype Spitfire which look absolutely amazing and outstanding and there are some thoroughly interesting displays about the world record airspeeds that the Hawker Hunter and Gloster Meteor held and how they achieved it giving you an idea of the how heroism and diligence conducted by the Pilots to achieve those records and The Hawker Hunter Mk3 and The Prototpe Spitfire are by far two best of the aircraft on display as they look magnificently iconic and also look very pristine and immaculate matching their lofty reputation. In the Merston Hall you can see a Canberra Cockpit and some interesting artefacts including flying Helmets, ejector seats and aircraft propellers which are in great condition. In the Meryl Hansed Memorial Hall you can see the Hunter Mk5 which is at the heart of the museum's preservation efforts and The English Electric Lightening F53 and there are some excellent displays about the aircraft giving an idea of their aviation history bolstering people's knowledge of it. In the Museum Grounds you can see a Memorial Garden which serves as a brilliant tribute to the volunteers and personnel with associations to RAF Tangmere and in the Grounds you can see some more aircraft including The Wessex HU5 Helicopter, Phantom FGR3, Sea Vixen FAW2, Meteor F8, Harrier GR3 and The Vampire T11 which are all marvellously displayed and in magnificent condition. There is a cafe selling a lovely range of food and drink at reasonable prices and also a gift shop with a great range of gifts at very reasonable prices. Overall this is a wonderful and great place to visit which for a pleasant, interesting and enjoyable day out. Well worth a visit whilst in the...

We had a fantastic day at Tangmere Aviation Museum! One of our sons declared it "the best ever," and both of our boys had an amazing time. The staff were absolutely wonderful—welcoming, knowledgeable, and passionate about what they do. They truly made us feel like part of the family.

The exhibits were fascinating, with a great range of aircraft and interactive experiences. The flight simulators were a real highlight, and our son particularly loved testing his reactions on the timer button. He was also thrilled to pick up a pilot suit from the gift shop!

The museum itself is clearly well cared for, and you can tell it's run by people who genuinely love what they do. The hangars were a bit chilly, but that’s understandable given the need to preserve the planes. We got so much out of our visit, but there's enough to see and learn that we could easily return and still discover more.

A special mention goes to one of the staff members who went above and beyond—he disappeared for a moment and came back with Airfix models for our boys to build, along with a Matchbox tank toy that they will treasure. It’s those little personal touches that made the day even more special.

The café was average, but that didn’t take away from the overall experience. Most importantly, as parents of children with additional needs, finding places where we can all enjoy a day out stress-free isn’t always easy. Tangmere delivered a brilliant day out, and we’re truly grateful to the staff for going the extra mile to make it memorable.

Highly recommended—we’ll...

Wonderful experience! Highly recommended!

My son and husband visited the museum and the gift shop last weekend. They had a wonderful day. My son purchased a RAF Jumpsuit to dress up in. Unfortunately the zip broke in the jumpsuit in the evening. My son was very upset and more so as to get to the museum it was over an hours drive away. I emailed the museum/gift shop and a lovely lady called Linda was very helpful, kind and willing to help. Linda arranged for a new suit to be exchanged for the faulty one. Due to us living over an hour away, Linda very kindly arranged for one of the volunteers called Mike to drop off the suit on his way back home as he lived near our way. This was a above and beyond service and a very kind gesture. The new jumpsuit was delivered safely, which my son was very happy about! The suit was wrapped up nicely in paper and even included a little story book! My son was extremely happy and over the moon with this and the fact he can now wear his RAF jumpsuit again, which he wears with pride! I just want to say a huge thank you to Linda for sorting this for us and to Mick for kindly delivering a new suit to us in person. Very kind of you both. The customer experience we experienced was fantastic. Such lovely staff with kind hearts! We will definitely be visiting again and highly recommend to anyone who loves history and war aircraft! 10/10 *

Thank...