Solent Sky facts for kids
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| Location | Southampton, United Kingdom |
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| Type | Aviation museum |
Solent Sky is an exciting aviation museum located in Southampton, England. It used to be called the Southampton Hall of Aviation.
This museum shows the amazing history of planes and flying in Southampton. It also covers the nearby Solent area and Hampshire. A big part of the museum focuses on Supermarine. This was a famous aircraft company from Woolston, Southampton. They built incredible planes like the Supermarine S.6 seaplane and the legendary Supermarine Spitfire. These planes were designed by a team led by R. J. Mitchell. The museum also tells the story of the Schneider Trophy seaplane races. These exciting races happened twice at Calshot Spit. You can also learn about the flying boat services that used to operate from the Solent.
Contents
History of the Museum
The idea for Solent Sky started with a smaller museum in the 1970s. It was dedicated to the Supermarine company. This first museum was in an old building near Havelock Road. By late 1982, the buildings were getting old. So, the museum committee asked the Southampton city council for a new building.
Construction on the current museum building began in 1983. Barry Eaton, the City Architect at the time, designed it. A large Short Sandringham plane was moved into the unfinished building on July 1, 1983. The new museum officially opened its doors on May 26, 1984.
More recently, on November 25, 2023, the front part of a BAC One-Eleven plane was moved to the museum's outside area. It came from the Cornwall Aviation Heritage Centre. In November 2024, the museum received permission to build a connection. This will link the plane's front section to the main museum building. In 2017, the museum also got a Britten-Norman Trislander plane. This plane used to fly for Aurigny airlines. It was moved to the Southampton site in April 2025.
Awesome Exhibits
The Solent Sky museum has many cool things to see. You can explore different types of aircraft and powerful engines.
Aircraft on Display
Here are some of the amazing aircraft you can see at the museum:
- Avro 504J - This is a replica, meaning it's a copy of the original plane.
- Britten-Norman BN-1
- de Havilland Sea Vixen FAW Mk.1 - XJ476
- de Havilland Tiger Moth
- de Havilland Vampire
- Folland Gnat
- Hawker Siddeley Harrier GR.3 - This is just the cockpit section. It was changed to look like a Harrier FRS.1.
- Mignet HM.14 Pou-du-Ciel - This name means "Sky Flea" in French!
- Saro Skeeter (x 2) - There are two of these helicopters.
- Saunders-Roe SR.A/1 - TG263
- Short Sandringham S.25/V - VH-BRC, Beachcomber
- Slingsby Grasshopper
- Slingsby Tandem Tutor
- SUMPAC
- Supermarine Nighthawk - Only the propellers from this plane are on display.
- Supermarine S.6A - N248, this plane competed in the 1929 Schneider Trophy race.
- Supermarine Seagull - Only the nose section of this plane is shown.
- Supermarine Spitfire F.24 - PK683 - A real Spitfire!
- Supermarine Swift - This is the cockpit section of the plane.
- Wight Quadruplane - This is a replica of a very old plane with four wings.
Engines to Explore
You can also see many different types of aircraft engines at the museum:
- Alvis Leonides
- Alvis Leonides Major
- Bristol Siddeley Orpheus
- Bristol Proteus
- de Havilland Gipsy Major
- Gnome Monosoupape
- Metrovick Beryl
- Napier Gazelle
- Napier Lion
- Napier Naiad
- Napier Sabre
- Napier Scorpion
- Rolls-Royce/Continental 0-300
- Rolls-Royce Derwent
- Rolls-Royce Merlin - A very famous engine, used in the Spitfire!
The Calshot Spit Lightship
The LV 78 Calshot Spit is a special lightship. It was built right in Southampton in 1914. A lightship is like a floating lighthouse. It helps guide ships safely. This one guided ships entering Southampton Water. It helped them avoid the sand and shingle at Calshot Spit.
The lightship was taken out of service in 1978. From 1988 to 2010, it was a cool attraction at the entrance to Ocean Village marina. On November 3, 2010, the lightship was moved. It went to Trafalgar Dry Dock for restoration work. There were plans for it to be part of a new museum called Aeronautica. However, those plans stopped in January 2012.
In December 2019, the Calshot Spit Lightship found a new home. It was moved to the Solent Sky Museum. The museum plans to turn it into part of their cafe. Imagine having a snack inside a historic lightship!
Other Cool Items
In 2017, a special exhibition was added to the museum. It was created by the Hampshire Police and Fire Heritage Trust. This exhibit shows the history of police and fire services in the area.
In September 2020, three old trams from Southampton were moved to the museum site. These trams are being restored. Tram 11 was finished by May 2025. Once they are ready, they will be put on public display.
Supporting the Museum
The Solent Sky museum is supported by a registered charity. This charity is called the R. J. Mitchell Memorial Museum Limited. Their main goal is to teach people about aviation. They do this by keeping the museum running. It's a lasting memorial to R. J. Mitchell. He was the brilliant designer of the Schneider Trophy S6B seaplane and the famous Spitfire.
See also
- List of aerospace museums
