Open Cockpit

Open Cockpit

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Get a look inside these historic aircraft!

A Great Kids’ Activity

Open Cockpit weekends at the Pacific Coast Air Museum are a great activity for kids and family. We raise the canopies and open the doors to give you an unobstructed view inside a genuine fighter plane, attack plane, transport, or helicopter.

You can even sit inside some of our planes and see what it was like to be the pilot or crew! On some planes, the controls are still hooked up to the control surfaces. So if you move the stick or wheel, you can see the ailerons or elevator move! It’s a great way to learn about how a plane is controlled. 

Some of the docents who guide you into the planes actually flew these very same aircraft. They’ll be happy to tell you all about it.

We have Open Cockpit weekends once a month except January (because of the weather) and September when we have our Air Show. Ordinary Museum entry donations apply.

Click on the events below to get the details about our next Open Cockpit event and join us for some fun at Pacific Coast Air Museum.

15FebruarySaturdayTour

Open Cockpit: DC-6 Airliner Cockpit

Time: Saturday, February 15, 2020February 15, 2020&nbsp-&nbsp10:00 am – February 16, 2020&nbsp-&nbsp10:00 am / One Air Museum Way, Santa RosaDC-6 Airliner Look inside this vintage aircraft, and learn about its history from the crew who has lovingly restoredDetails21MarchSaturdayTour

Open Cockpit: Vertical Lift – H-34 Choctaw and UH-1H Huey Helicopters

Time: Saturday, March 21, 2020March 21, 2020&nbsp-&nbsp10:00 am – March 22, 2020&nbsp-&nbsp10:00 am / One Air Museum Way, Santa RosaH-34 Choctaw Helicopter and UH-1H Huey Helicopter Look inside these vintage aircraft, and learn about their history from theDetails18AprilSaturdayTour

Open Cockpit: Top Gun Weekend

Time: Saturday, April 18, 2020April 18, 2020&nbsp-&nbsp10:00 am – April 19, 2020&nbsp-&nbsp10:00 am / One Air Museum Way, Santa RosaTop Gun Weekend Look into the cockpits of these vintage aircraft and learn about their history from the crewsDetails20JuneSaturdayTour

Open Cockpit: Vertical Flight Weekend – AV-8C Harrier

Time: Saturday, June 20, 2020June 20, 2020&nbsp-&nbsp10:00 am – June 21, 2020&nbsp-&nbsp10:00 am / One Air Museum Way, Santa RosaVertical Flight: AV-8C Hawker Harrier The June 15 and 16 Open Cockpit weekend features the AV-8C Harrier! The HarrierDetails16MaySaturdayTour

Supersonic Weekend

Time: Saturday, May 16, 2020May 16, 2020&nbsp-&nbsp10:00 am – May 17, 2020&nbsp-&nbsp10:00 am / One Air Museum Way, Santa RosaSupersonic Weekend Look inside these vintage aircraft, and learn about their history from the crews who have lovingly restoredDetails14DecemberSaturdayTour

Open Cockpit: Santa Fly-In

Time: Saturday, December 14, 201910:00 am – 2:00 pm / One Air Museum Way Santa Rosa 95403Open Cockpit during Santa Fly-In: December 14th. The December 2019 Open Cockpit weekend takes place Saturday, December 14th duringDetails