The San Diego Air & Space Museum’s Gillespie Field Annex will once again welcome the local chapter of the International Plastic Modelers Society for one of the Annex’s most popular recurring events: the Modelers Swap Meet.

The event returns on Saturday, June 13, bringing modelers, collectors, families, aviation enthusiasts, and visitors together for a day centered on craftsmanship, community, and the shared love of flight. More than 70 vendors will fill Hangar One, offering model kits, toys, books, aerospace collectibles, militaria items, and other aviation-related finds. This year’s gathering will also include the IPMS Region 8 model contest, a regional competition that rotates through the Southwest and will be hosted in San Diego this year.

For more than 25 years, the Museum has partnered with the local IPMS chapter to host the Modelers Swap Meet at Gillespie Field. For its first two decades, the swap meet was held each June as an annual gathering of modelers, collectors, and aviation enthusiasts. As interest continued to grow, a second swap meet was added in January or February. The June event remains the original and larger gathering, traditionally pairing the swap meet with a model competition.

The relationship between the Museum and IPMS has also grown beyond the swap meet itself. For the past five years, the club has held its regular monthly meetings at the Gillespie Field Annex, making the site an ongoing gathering place for modelers, aviation enthusiasts, and members of the local aerospace community. That continued presence reflects one of the strengths of the Annex. It is not only a place where aircraft and artifacts are preserved and displayed, but also a place where people gather around aviation history in active and hands-on ways.

The Modelers Swap Meet is especially well suited to Gillespie Field because the event connects detailed craftsmanship with the larger history of flight. Scale models often begin with close observation: the shape of a wing, the markings on a fuselage, the placement of landing gear, or the weathering on an aircraft that tells part of its operational story. At the Annex, that attention to detail is surrounded by the full-scale aircraft and aerospace history that inspired it.

Located in El Cajon, the Gillespie Field Annex extends the San Diego Air & Space Museum’s story beyond Balboa Park. The site provides additional space for aircraft, vehicles, engines, restoration activity, and exhibits that continue the story of aviation into the Cold War, Vietnam era, and modern jet age. Visitors attending the Modelers Swap Meet can also explore the hangars, view historic aircraft up close, see active restoration projects, and experience a side of the Museum set within an active airfield, where aircraft continue to take off and land nearby.

As the Modelers Swap Meet has continued to grow, so has the experience for visitors. In recent years, the Museum has added a food truck and family-friendly activities, making the event welcoming for longtime collectors as well as families and first-time guests. The event offers something for those deeply involved in the modeling community and for those who simply enjoy browsing, learning, and spending time around aircraft. On swap meet days, the Annex feels especially active, with people moving between vendor tables, model displays, aircraft, and conversations about aviation history.

Visitors are invited to explore the Annex, meet local modelers, browse vendor tables, enjoy food and activities, and experience a community tradition that continues to bring aviation history to life at Gillespie Field.

Event Details
Saturday, June 13
Gillespie Field Annex, San Diego Air & Space Museum
335 Kenney Street, El Cajon, CA 92020
9:00 AM to 1:00 PM
Museum closes at 4:00 PM

For more information:
https://sandiegoairandspace.org/newsletters/article/san-diego-model-expo-contest-and-swap-meet-set-for-saturday-june-13-at-the-museums-gillespie-field-annex-in-el-cajon