TWA Museum — Attraction in Kansas City

Up, Up and Away

I love to find quirky museums that offer a treasure chest full of information. Today, that place was the TWA museum. How do you place 75 years of aviation history, 1925-2000, into one visit? Carefully and by order. The displays are well organized and with the help of either a pamphlet self-guided or guided tour, each case is labeled with pertinent information presented and coordinated with the brochure given after you pay the 10.00 admission fee. My favorite case, no.3, displayed the history of the TWA Hostess uniforms from the 1930’s through 1971. You’ll be introduced to the very first flight uniform drawn by George Petty. The Cutout uniform designed by Howard Geer provided a discreet flap cover that was used to disguise the user in uniform allowing her to smoke in public. In 1968 the ‘Foreign Accent’ dresses were paper and coordinated with TWA’s “Taste of Europe” tours. During the 1970’s, Valentino designed uniforms and the allowance of “hot pants” as a uniform option showed how current trends in fashion crossed into air travel. Other cases are collected memorabilia by TWA employees, vintage pilot uniforms, various menus for first class, the Amelia Earhart chair, the ground crews’ tools and more. You can experience the flight simulator by taking flight and landing a plane (so much for my career as a pilot). During the tour of the hanger you will visit the education room and LAX training equipment. You are later lead onto the tarmac to get a close up look at a couple of the TWA planes. I didn’t expect to have so much fun with the staff to the point I wanted to work as a volunteer. Pam B, the director, is a hoot and kept me laughing while she mixed humor with historical facts. Janet and Nina, volunteers in the gift shop, brightened my day with their kindness. And Arthur handled the high temperatures with grace as he escorted us out to the airplanes. Overall: For a small museum, you will find so much information at every turn and within every showcase. The volunteers are knowledgeable and a pleasure to interact with. This was worth the visit and brought back so many...

Great museum! Staff very very very informative and friendly! Honestly didn't even know what TWA was and had just thought that this was a airplane museum where we could see some nice displays of old plane stuff, but boy was I wrong! Turns out it's an extensive walk through history of a once great airline and it's impact on the world of aviation, and KC!

Was visiting before going on my first ever flight, and the volunteers there did nothing but ease my nerves! They really are what made the whole experience, and gave my girlfriend and I a guided tour throughout the museum explaining every single plane, how it impacted the TWA's growth, and the industry as a whole, and taking us through the decades of TWA as they revolutionized the highways in the sky, and the instrument used to travel them. It's inspirational to see the volunteers dedication. You can tell they really loved they're time working for TWA, and dedicate a portion of they're life to preserving and passing on the information of the airline. Would visit again just to see them!

They have just one airplane, but the story of it is just incredible. The staff really could spend an evening telling you stories of they're time onboard. The airplane is an older passenger plane, and seeing it and being able to go inside of it is amazing!

They're simulator is definitely a little old and laggy, but was really awesome to use, and the instructor was amazing at guiding me through how to fly and land the plane!

They have an entire room with multiple full sized aviation cockpits that you can sit in! It's amazing the amount of buttons and switches that are in these planes.

They're new exhibit they're building is sure to be phenomenal and a real experience. It's going to be an entire process from buying a ticket, to boarding a TWA plane, being served a meal, just like the glory days of TWA!

Was really an amazing time and totally different from what I expected. Would not hesitate to stop by again on my next trip to KC to say hi to...

What a hidden Gem in KC! I guess I was expecting a run down hanger of relics from a by gone area but instead, it is a treasure trove of all things TWA! Yes, the museum is small, but I don't think that's a bad thing. I just had about 30 minutes to tour so I got the express version so I really didn't get the full experience, which by the way I plan to do the next time we're in the area.

Because this is an active hanger, you're provided a tour guide to show you around and tell the TWA story with others visiting. I was told the full tour is about an hour and a half. The TWA plane in the hanger that you get to board, check out, take pics from the Pilots seat had to be my favorite display.

As a nice plus, the staff that were present the day I visited were super welcoming, personal and had lengthy experience in the aviation industry. I appreciate when I visit places, people truly care about what they are doing. You can just tell that they want you to see what their museum has to offer and they are glad you made the time to visit.

Just a few things visitors need to be aware of ---- There is road construction when you exit to go down the ramp to the museum and the signage is definitely confusing. I must of went around the round-about half a dozen times trying to figure out how to get to the parking lot. Just go to Signature Aviation MKC - Charles B. Wheeler Downtown Airport, which the TWA museum shares the building with. Related to the location above, since TWA shares the building, walk into the entrance, turn left and follow the hallway until you see the TWA desk. It's a little confusing but once you realize that they share the building, it's easy to find the way.

Once again, thank you TWA for an amazing quick visit and Lord willing, if I'm in the area again, I will be back to get the...