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2001 Pan American Plz San Diego, CA 92101 – Website
Inside the historic Ford Building in Balboa Park in San Diego, California is the San Diego Air & Space Museum. The museum was formally known as the San Diego Aerospace Museum established in 1961 and opened to the public in 1963. The museum is an aviation and space exploration museum. Home to several originals and reproductions of historic aircraft and spacecraft, such as the Apollo 9 command module “Gumdrop”.
Originally the museum was in the Food and Beverage building from the 1915 Panama-California Exposition and then in 1965 was moved to the Electrical Building, a larger location. In 1958 an arson fire destroyed the Electrical Building, several aircraft, artifacts, archives, and the International Aerospace Hall of Fame. The Museum reopened in 1980 with a smaller collection in the Ford Building. In 2005 the museum became affiliated with the Smithsonian Institute.
Outside of the museum, you can see a Lockheed A-12 and a Convair YF2Y-1 Sea Dart. In addition to the main museum, the Gillespie Field Annex houses a restoration facility and additional display space.
The San Diego Art & Space Museum is part of the Bolboa Explorer Pass. Open daily from 10:00 AM to 4:30 PM. You can take a docent basement tour for $10. General admission is $25 for adults, $15 for youth 3-11 years old, $21 for seniors/retired military with ID, active duty military and children under 2 years old are free.
