CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The former Carolinas Aviation Museum announced Tuesday that it will hold a groundbreaking ceremony for its new facility on Tuesday, Sept. 27.
The 105,000-square-foot facility will sit adjacent to Charlotte Douglas International Airport.
Back in 2019, the museum announced it would close for two years as it worked to find a new permanent location.
According to a news release, the future facility will be renamed in honor of Capt. C.B. “Sully” Sullenberger, who famously landed US Airways Flight 1549 safely in New York City’s Hudson River in 2009, a remarkable feat known as the Miracle on the Hudson. The actual plane is the museum’s featured exhibit. With over 45 historic aircraft, the multi-building campus will also include flight simulators, immersive multimedia, interactive exhibits and STEM education programs.
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“It’s extremely uplifting to have so much momentum, buoyed by the generous public and private support for our mission of improving lives and economic opportunities through the innovative and expanding field of aviation,” Stephen Saucier, president of the Carolinas Aviation Museum, said. “For centuries humans dreamed of flying, and now this museum will utilize the wonder of flight to inspire the next generation into the STEM fields and to celebrate our state’s growing aviation and aerospace industries.”
Charlotte Douglas is managing site development, which will be conducted in two phases. The new museum is projected to open at the end of 2023 and is expected to draw more than 120,000 visitors annually and connect more than 15,000 students to STEM programming and career development labs.
Carolina Aviation Museum
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