Aviation museum to re-open after makeover

A close-up of a museum display showing black-and-white photos of RAF personnel who won the Victoria Cross and other honours. Each photo is mounted on a purple and red board, with text detailing their name, dates of birth and death, the medal they received and a description of their life and service. The closest photo shows the head and shoulders of a young man wearing an RAF uniform. The text reads: "Leslie Thomas Manser, 11 May 1922 - 31 May 1942, Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, Victoria Cross." — Recipients of the Victoria Cross are among those remembered at the museum

A ceremony will be held later to celebrate the reopening of an aviation museum in Lincolnshire.

Cranwell Aviation Heritage Museum, just off the A17 near North Rauceby, closed for three months in December 2025 for “essential repairs and maintenance”.

North Kesteven District Council said visitors would be able to enjoy an “enhanced experience” when the site reopens to the public on Good Friday at 10:00am.

Council leader Richard Wright said: “We are excited to welcome the public back to the museum this Easter and to enjoy the fantastic experience the site has to offer.”

An old, weathered jet aircraft standing in a gravel yard outside yellow-brick buildings. The plane is painted orange on the bottom half and white on the top half. The top half of its nose is painted black. A letter large "B" is stencilled on to the side. The sky is grey. — Volunteers at RAF Cranwell are restoring the BAC Jet Provost

The museum, external, which was first opened to the public in 1992 by the Dujke of Gloucester, celebrates the history of nearby RAF Cranwell, the officer training college.

The council said the site has been made more functional and welcoming and the shop and cafe had also been upgraded.

A new virtual reality experience has been created to offer “immersive ways to experience aviation”.

Volunteers at RAF Cranwell are also restoring the BAC Jet Provost, a trainer aircraft used between 1955 and 1993.