For the first time ever, step inside the workshop where history comes back to life. The San Diego Air & Space Museum now offers behind-the-scenes tours of its world-class Restoration Facility, located in the historic Ford Building in Balboa Park.

See where the magic happens

On the main floor, you've marveled at a Wright Brothers Flyer, Charles Lindbergh's Spirit of St. Louis, a Bell X-1, and the actual Apollo 9 Command Module. Now you can see where many of these treasures were brought back to life.

The Restoration Facility's craftsmen have restored, revived, or built from scratch an extraordinary roster of aircraft, including the Bell X-1 (the first aircraft to break the sound barrier in level flight), a Chance Vought F4U-7 Corsair (AU-1), a Fokker E.III Eindecker, a Ford Tri-Motor, a Douglas SBD Dauntless, a Granville Brothers Gee Bee R-1 Thompson Trophy Racer, a Boeing P-26 "Peashooter," a Grumman F4F-3 Wildcat, a Grumman F3F, a GPS satellite, and a Boeing FB-5 Hawk (now on display in Hangar One at the Museum's Annex at Gillespie Field).

The Engine Shop's work is just as remarkable, having restored a working replica of the Wright Flyer engine (history's first aircraft engine), an SR-71 Pratt & Whitney J58, a Pratt & Whitney R-985, an Allison V-1710, a rare World War I-era Le Rhône, a GE I-16 turbojet, and a Klimov VK-1F turbojet, among many others.

On your tour, you'll get an up-close look at current projects, including a reproduction of Howard Hughes' famous H-1 Racer, the centerpiece of the tour, along with the Piasecki-Vertol Model 44B "Holy One," underway at the Museum's Gillespie Field location.

"Our world-class Restoration Facility is where the magic happens," said Jim Kidrick, President & CEO of the San Diego Air & Space Museum. "Our volunteers and docents are the lifeblood of the Museum, the true driving force of what makes the San Diego Air & Space Museum one of the premier aviation and space exploration experiences in the world. Their work, craftsmanship, and dedication to perfection deserve our respect, and we're thrilled to share their story with everyone who visits the Museum."

Plan your visit

Restoration Facility tours run Mondays and Wednesdays, with the first tour of the day starting at 10:30 am, alongside guided Docent tours on the main floor. Tours are $10 with paid general admission. Sign up in person at the Museum's admission desk. Tour details will be updated on this site as the experience evolves.

As seen on

The tours have drawn coverage from KPBS, CBS 8, and ABC 10 News.