RAAF Wagga Heritage Centre

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RAAF Wagga Heritage Centre
RAAF Wagga Heritage Centre 01.jpg
RAAF Wagga Heritage Centre
Established24 June 1995
Location Stuart Highway, Forest Hill, New South Wales
Coordinates 35°08′57″S147°28′04″E / 35.1492°S 147.4678°E / -35.1492; 147.4678
Type Aviation museum
Website www.airforce.gov.au

RAAF Wagga Heritage Centre is an aviation museum at RAAF Base Wagga, on the Sturt Highway, Forest Hill, New South Wales. [1] The heritage centre has indoor and outdoor displays of aircraft, memorabilia and photographs relating to the Royal Australian Air Force in the Riverina.

Contents

History

RAAF Wagga Heritage Centre opened in June 1995 with items from RAAF Base Wagga and items which was donated by the community. [2] The museum was closed in 2001 for refurbishment [1] with the memorabilia temporarily relocated to the Point Cook RAAF museum but plans to reopen the museum were quietly scrapped after the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) adopted a new policy in 2003, which stated that it would only fund RAAF Museum at Point Cook. [3] [4]

AirCare and Wagga Wagga based newspaper The Daily Advertiser ran a campaign during late September and early October 2008 in an attempt to reverse the Australian Defence Force's decision. [5]

On 13 December 2008, it was announced that the museum would be reopening in 2009. The RAAF would spend $75,000 completing the refurbishment of the museum building. [6]

In May 2009, a public consultation meeting was held to discuss plans for the centre, including the $130,000 set aside by the RAAF for outfitting the building for a future heritage display. [7]

The heritage centre was officially opened on the 12 October 2010. [8]

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 "RAAF Museum". Tourism Wagga Wagga. Archived from the original on 12 November 2007. Retrieved 19 March 2008.
  2. Holliday, Rebekah (27 September 2008). "Only photos left". Daily Advertiser . Fairfax Media. p. 3.
  3. Holliday, Rebekah (18 September 2008). "Museum in mothballs". The Daily Advertiser. Archived from the original on 8 July 2012. Retrieved 18 September 2008.
  4. Holliday, Rebekah (22 September 2008). "ADF lied for years". The Daily Advertiser. Archived from the original on 7 July 2012. Retrieved 22 September 2008.
  5. Holliday, Rebekah (30 September 2008). "Mounting support to save museum". The Daily Advertiser. Retrieved 16 December 2008.
  6. Holliday, Rebekah (15 December 2008). "RAAF Museum is resurrected". The Daily Advertiser. Retrieved 16 December 2008.
  7. Kelly, TMike (8 May 2009). "Public meeting on Air Force Heritage Centre". Australian Government. Department of Defence. Archived from the original on 26 June 2009. Retrieved 31 July 2009.
  8. "RAAF to open Heritage Centre". The Daily Advertiser. 12 October 2010. p. 4.

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