Glenn L Martin Maryland Aviation Museum — Attraction in Middle River

What an amazing museum run by an amazing team of volunteers, all fellow aviation aficionados that put in so much of their personal time and energy, they deserve a round of applause. The interesting part is that the museum is part of an active airport and ANG airbase. This has both disadvantages and advantages..

The story told by 1 of the volunteers on the early days of Glenn L. Martin up to the fantastic line-up of aircraft outside and some beautiful oil paintings, photos and aircraft engines make for a very nice half day out for the whole family, incl. kids from say 6-7 years old.

The whole place is a full of history. The ramps used by the Martin flying boats into the river from the airport as well as at the (now) LMTAS site are still visible! Albeit the latter one only from the air (see insider tip #2)..

They are restoring 2 very rare planes: a Martin Mauler and a Martin Seamaster (yes, that jet-powered flying boat, whooaah!), for which they get zero support from any government or commercial body, so please donate or support them in another way to avoid these unique pieces of modern history getting lost forever. Some of these planes have only 1 or 2 remaining worldwide.

I'm counting on all of you out there to come and enjoy and support them cause I plan to come back in a decade or so and see the Martin Mars on the tarmac! :-)

Insider tip #1: If you're not from the area; make sure you eat a lovely fresh crab cake sandwich while you're here!

Tip #2: Check with Brett Aviation next door for offers via Groupon on a scenic tour over the Chesapeake Bay and Baltimore centre. They might even give you the controls for a spell!

Thanks Paul (2×, also Paul from SA at Brett's), Jim and everyone else I met...

It's been nine years since my last visit, so hopefully things have changed since then. But both of my visits to this museum, in 2002 and 2007, were frustrated by not being able to see the aircraft exhibits. This museum has two physical locations: part of it occupies a few rooms in what was once the Martin aircraft company administration building, showing pictures and some small artifacts. The other part is perhaps a quarter-mile away down Strawberry Point Road, inside part of the airport's ramp area and fenced off from the road by a locked gate. This is where they keep their aircraft in outdoor storage, and some larger artifacts such as, I understand, the tail that is all that remains of the magnificent P6M SeaMaster jet flying boat. Both of the times I visited, the museum was staffed only by a single person, who could not leave the rooms to give me access to the aircraft display. Now, the heart of any aviation museum is the actual aircraft, so not being able to see them really detracts from the experience. I'm deaf, so could not call while on the road, but based on my experience, I strongly advise you to call a day or two in advance to check on whether or not you can get access to the...

It's a small museum, with hopes of expanding, and is packed with the history of Glen L. Martin Co.'s major roles in building aircraft during World War II and space shuttles, such as Gemini and Apollo, as part of the USA's participation in space exploration. My husband's grandfather (Charles Tolson), worked at Martin's during those times, and kept many personal documents and photos, which my husband donated to the museum. There is a special interactive room for kiddos where they can explore Martin's history in aircraft at their own level. There are no fees, though gratuities are appreciated. P.S. I grew up near Martin's and remember arms that descended over Eastern Ave. that paused traffic in order for planes to taxi to additional hangars across the street from the airport and sea planes that landed in...