St. Louis Air
and Space Museum

Our Museum

The Greater St. Louis Air and Space Museum is a one-of-a-kind museum that brings the incredible history of flight to life for thousands of visitors each year. With vintage aircraft, real cockpits, and hundreds of thousands of artifacts and rare photographs, this landmark offers a truly memorable experience for adults and children alike.

Mission

To serve the public through preservation and display of historic air and space artifacts and educational programs to foster the spirit of flight in today’s youth and in future generations.

Vision

To be a world-class museum focusing on all aspects of Aerospace history.

Museum History

  • Founded in 1982 as the St. Louis Aviation Museum, a tax-exempt, non-profit 501(c)(3) organization.
  • Initially located at Creve Coeur Airport, then at Spirit of St. Louis Airport enduring the disastrous floods of 1986 and 1993.
  • Closed public displays facility in September 2001 and moved artifacts to storage.
  • Re-opened museum as Greater St. Louis Air & Space Museum at historic St. Louis Downtown Airport in January 2005.

Airport and Museum Building History

  • Consortium formed in 1928 establishing Port of St. Louis, part of which was the airport.
  • Curtiss-Steinberg Airport (Curtiss-Wright Corporation and Mark Steinberg of Steinberg Skating Rink in Forest Park) dedicated in November 1929.
  • Curtiss-Wright invested heavily in airports across the country to promote aviation in the wake of the Lindbergh flight of 1927.
  • Hangar 2, the Museum building, built in 1929-1930. Dedicated March 1930. (Note: Curtiss-Wright logos on hangar façade depicting St. Louis-built Curtiss “Robin.” The “Robin” was used in the endurance flights and for “Wrong-way” Corrigan’s flight to Ireland.)
  • No manufacturing was done at Curtiss-Steinberg. Airplanes were built at Curtiss-Robertson and Curtiss-Wright plants near Lambert Field (factory area absorbed by McDonnell Aircraft).
  • Entire airport leased to Oliver Parks in 1940 for use as training school for military pilots and crewmen. Remained a flight school throughout WWII.

Hangar now on National Register of Historic Places.

  • Airlines with roots in Hangar 2: TWA, American, and Ozark.
  • Early aviators visiting and/or associated with Hangar 2: Ray Wassall, Charles Lindbergh, Jimmy Doolittle (Doolittle made an emergency parachute jump here in 1931), James and May Haizlip, Albert Lambert, Oliver Parks, Wiley Post, Amelia Earhart, Frank Hawks, and Wallace Beery.

Board of Directors

President
Mark Nankivil

Vice President
Rick Rehg

Treasurer

Curator
Mike Burke

Directors
Tom Ahillen
Woody Almind
Joe Gutknecht
Keith Mueller
Craig O’Mara

Museum Director