Museum of the History of Aviation Engine Construction

The Museum of the History of Aviation Engine Construction and Repair in Gatchina is located opposite the entrance to the Great Gatchina Palace. In the 19th century, these buildings housed soldiers of the Life Guards of the Uhlan regiment, and in 1944 there were workshops for repairing aircraft engines. 

The Museum of the History of Aviation Engine Construction was created in Gatchina in 2002 on the basis of workshops 218 of the Aviation Repair Plant. In a one-story building on an area of 800 meters, you can see 15 full-scale models of engines that have been repaired in Gatchina for decades. There are aircraft turbojet, turboprop and turboshaft engines, as well as other aircraft parts. Many exhibits are related to the military history of repair shops.  

The history of the 218 aircraft repair plant begins with workshops created in 1941 in besieged Leningrad for the repair of aircraft engines. In 1944, the siege of Leningrad was lifted, and aircraft repair workshops were transferred to the buildings of the former barracks of the Life Guards regiments near the Gatchina Palace. 

218 Aviation Repair Plant (218 ARZ) continues its work in Gatchina today. Its main specialization is maintenance and overhaul of all types of engines of military aircraft and helicopters. The Museum of the History of Aviation Engine Construction is not only a museum, but also a classroom for the company`s employees and students. 

There is a small garden in front of the Museum of the History of aviation engine construction, where a model of the Farman aircraft is installed. This is the first aircraft launched into mass production. It was created in 1910 by the French aircraft designer Henri Farman. In Russia, 1500 aircraft of this type were produced under license.  

The first Russian military airfield was opened in Gatchina. In 1910, it housed two Farman aircraft and one Wright brothers airplane. On the basis of this airfield, the first flight school in Russia was created. Here the history of aviation began in Russia. All the pilots who became famous asses during the WWII were trained at the Gatchina airfield. 

In front of the museum there is also a monument to the first submarine of Dzhevetsky. It was created by designer Stepan Dzhevetsky in 1880 and was mass-produced. The first test took place on the Silver Lake of Gatchina. Dzhevetsky maneuvered on his submarine at the bottom of the lake, and Emperor Alexander III sailed on a boat on the lake and watched him. Later, Dzhevetsky swam up to the target raft and blew it up with a mine. The tests were deemed successful.