The exhibition presenting the history of Rakowice-Czyżyny Airport, one of the oldest airports in Europe, which celebrates its 110th anniversary this year, can be seen from Wednesday at the Polish Aviation Museum in Krakow . This installation occupies a small part of this landing site.
As noted by the director of MPL, Tomasz Kosecki, the round anniversary is a great opportunity to recall the past of this part of Krakow, which, if presented correctly, will surely fire the imagination of many local residents.
The temporary exhibition “110 years of Racowice-Czyżyny Airport 1912-2022” is presented in the main hangar of the MPL and consists of 12 panels with archival photos showing the history of Krakow Airport since the appearance of the first Austro-Hungarian aviation aircraft in 1912, through the period of the First World War, the interwar period, the period of the Second World War and the post-war years up to These days.
The exhibition describes the functioning of an active airport, its liquidation, the creation and operation of a museum, and a partial restoration of its aeronautical function. In addition, lectures and a targeted thematic publication are planned, which will be published next year as part of the celebration of the 60th anniversary of the Polish Aviation Museum.
Rakowice-Czyżyny military airport is one of the oldest airports in Europe. It was founded in 1912 for the needs of the Austro-Hungarian air force, but already in 1892 observation balloons of this army were stationed in this area.
After the facility was taken over by invaders in 1918, the airport became the first airbase in independent Poland. In the mid-1920s, the Polish military authorities decided to expand the complex, which resulted in the construction of the second largest airport in the country. In September 1939, it shared the fate of other Polish air bases and was repeatedly bombed by German bombers. During World War II, Krakow Airport was used by the Luftwaffe.
Rebuilt after World War II, it operated until 1963. The airport was closed due to the expansion of the Nowa Huta Metallurgical Plant and accompanying housing estates.
A small fragment of the landing field and some of the old airport facilities are currently used by MLP. It occupies the surviving Polish airport facilities, which include a large hangar and garage and storage facilities, built around the turn of the 1920s and 1930s, and two smaller buildings built by the Germans during the occupation.
Attractive premises in shopping malls and city centers – see offers on PropertyStock.pl