Prague-Kbely Aviation Museum

If you associate Prague only with the Old Town, Charles Bridge and Václav Havel Airport, you are missing one of Central Europe’s most exciting aviation destinations. In the Kbely district, in the northeast of the capital, on an active military airfield, lies the Letecké muzeum Kbely. Here stand the aircraft with which Czechoslovakia built up its air force from 1918, the postwar copies of German types, almost the complete MiG family and, with the ČSA Tupolev Tu-104A, one of the world’s first jet airliners. And all of it with free admission.

A museum on historic ground

Kbely airfield is closely tied to the country’s history. After the founding of Czechoslovakia in 1918, it became the first base of the young air force. Some of the hangars that house the exhibition today date from this early period. According to Czech Wikipedia, for example, a Hart-type hangar was brought from Cheb to Kbely in 1919 – today it is called Janečka Hall.

The name commemorates Colonel Ing. Jaroslav Janečka, to whom the idea for the museum goes back. From the mid-1960s the Prague Military Museum collected historic aircraft, restored them and brought them together in Kbely. After an improvised show in September 1967, the first official exhibition opened on October 11, 1968 – with 62 aircraft in a single hangar. From 1969 it ran as a seasonal permanent exhibition.

The 1990s were difficult: According to Czech Wikipedia, the museum fell into a crisis, and in 1995 the heavy ground equipment was moved to the Military Technical Museum Lešany. A modernization followed in the 2000s, during which several halls were redesigned and reopened: Janečka Hall (Hangar H-88) in 2003, Sýkora Hall in 2004 and Janoušek Hall in 2009. In 2016 the branch Stará Aerovka in Letňany was added.

Today the Prague Military History Institute (Vojenský historický ústav, VHÚ) runs the museum. Depending on the source and how it is counted, different figures circulate for the size of the collection. Reference works speak of around 275 aircraft in total, many of which are in storage or kept airworthy. The Prague tourism portal cites 128 aircraft and just under 50 engines for the permanent exhibition. That makes Kbely one of Europe’s larger aviation museums.

How the exhibition is organized

The exhibition follows time. You start at the beginnings of Czechoslovak military flying and work your way up to the jets of the Cold War. Each hall stands for an era – which makes the tour easy to follow, even if you bring little prior knowledge.

Which aircraft stands where can change because of restorations and rebuilds. The table gives you an orientation, not a guarantee.

The beginnings: the First Republic

The two oldest halls deal with the interwar period. According to Czech Wikipedia, the Letov Š-2 belongs to the first family of combat aircraft designed and built in Czechoslovakia – the only surviving example stands in Kbely – and the Aero A-10 was the first Czechoslovak airliner. One of the stars is the Avia B-534, a biplane fighter of the 1930s that ranks among the best-known aircraft in Czech aviation history.

New in the spotlight since 2026 is the Aero Ab-11. According to VHÚ, this biplane achieved a record long-distance flight of more than 15,000 kilometers in 1926, through 23 countries on three continents. At the start of the 2026 season, the museum presented the restored aircraft.

World War II and the Czech “Germans”

For many visitors, the war and postwar period is the most exciting part. Alongside Soviet types like the Ilyushin Il-2 and the Lavochkin La-7, two special chapters of Czech industry stand here:

• Avia S-92: After the war, Czechoslovakia continued building the Messerschmitt Me 262 from existing parts in small numbers. The S-92 is one of the few surviving examples of these early jet fighters.
• Avia S-199: A descendant of the Bf 109, also built in the postwar period. If you know the original, you will spot the differences in the engine cowling and the propeller.

Add Western types like the de Havilland Tiger Moth and the North American Harvard – Western trainers that open the view beyond the Eastern Bloc.

The first jet generation

According to Czech Wikipedia, Hall H-17 shows how jet aircraft developed side by side in East and West. Alongside the S-92 stand the Gloster Meteor F Mk.8, the de Havilland Vampire FB Mk.6, the Soviet Yak-17 and the American Lockheed T-33. You rarely see the early jets of both blocs standing so close together.

Cold War: the big postwar hall

The centerpiece for military jet fans is the largest exhibition hall. It was built after 1945 on the site of bombed hangars and, according to Czech Wikipedia, gathers almost 60 aircraft. Here the MiGs stand in a row that you rarely see this complete elsewhere:

• MiG-15 and MiG-17 – the jets of the first postwar years
• MiG-19 – according to visitor reports, the MiG-19PM with air-to-air missiles under the wings
• MiG-21 – the workhorse of the Warsaw Pact air forces
• MiG-23 with swing wings
• MiG-29 – the most modern member of the series in the hall

The row is complemented by the domestic jet trainers L-29 Delfín and L-39 Albatros from Aero Vodochody as well as sport and touring aircraft like the Let L-200 Morava. If you want to train your fighter jet recognition, the article Identifying fighter jets in Europe offers a suitable foundation.

In the same hall the museum also shows the landing capsule of Soyuz 28. In it, Vladimír Remek returned to Earth in 1978 – he was the first space traveler who came from neither the Soviet Union nor the US. According to Czech Wikipedia, his spacesuit is also on display.

The ČSA Tu-104A

Outside stands the largest aircraft in the collection: a Tupolev Tu-104A of the Czechoslovak airline ČSA. According to Czech Wikipedia, the Tu-104A was ČSA’s first jet airliner. That put the airline among the early jet operators in Europe in the late 1950s.

The Tu-104 is an emblem of postwar Soviet aviation. It was derived from a bomber, which you can tell by the glazed nose. The two engines sit in the wing roots. Today such aircraft can only be seen in museums. The article on Soviet airliners puts it in the context of the history of Eastern Bloc airliners.

Next to the Tupolev, the outdoor area holds more aircraft, including, according to visitor reports, a DC-3/C-47 in the colors of a transport regiment of the late 1940s. An Ilyushin Il-18 is also part of the collection: VHÚ presented it after a restoration at the start of the 2026 season.

Stará Aerovka: the branch in Letňany

Since 2016, the Stará Aerovka has belonged to the museum. The name means “old Aerovka” and stands for two historic halls of the aircraft manufacturer Aero in Letňany. According to visitor reports, it is around 900 meters on foot to the main grounds – allow for the walk.

• Hall V shows bombers and combat aircraft from World War II to the 1980s, including the Aero C-3A (the Czech version of the Siebel Si 204), the forward fuselage of a Petlyakov Pe-2 and Sukhoi fighter-bombers (Su-7 and Su-22).
• Hall VI is devoted to Aero’s company history. Here stand a replica of the Aero A-18 from the 1920s and prototypes of the L-29, the L-39 and the L-159 ALCA.

For type fans, Hall VI is especially appealing: The L-39 is one of the most successful jet trainers ever, and here you see a prototype with which development began.

Photography in Kbely

Kbely is a museum for discovery but not an easy photo museum. In many halls the aircraft stand close together, and all-round views are rare. That calls for a different approach than at the fence.

Getting there, season and visit

The museum is on Mladoboleslavská street in Praha 9 – Kbely. VHÚ recommends public transport because parking is limited and fills up quickly.

• By metro and bus: Metro C to the terminus Letňany, then one of the bus lines to the “Letecké muzeum” stop, which is right at the gate. According to VHÚ, lines 185 and 302 stop there, among others.
• From line B: From the stations Českomoravská and Vysočanská, line 375 runs to the museum.
• By car: possible, but with limited parking.

The museum is seasonal. According to the Prague tourism portal, it is open from May to September Tuesday to Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and in October on Saturdays and Sundays only; last admission is at 5:30 p.m. The 2026 season began as early as April 25, according to VHÚ. The museum stays closed in winter. Since hours can shift from year to year, check the VHÚ website before you travel.

Admission is free. Children under 15 may enter the exhibition only accompanied by adults. According to the Prague tourism portal, the exhibitions are wheelchair accessible.

Events and the airworthy collection

Part of the collection is airworthy. For the 2026 season opening, VHÚ announced demonstrations with a Zlín Z-381, a Zlín Z-126 Trenér and an Aero C-104, among others – each depending on weather and technical condition. Such dates are the best opportunity to photograph historic aircraft not just standing still but in the air. You will find tips in the article Photographing airshows.

The museum restores its aircraft in its own workshops, in part together with industry partners. If the work behind the scenes appeals to you, read the article on volunteering in aviation museums.

Combining: museum and live traffic in Prague

Kbely is ideal as a building block of a spotter trip to Prague. A sensible plan: one day at the museum, one day at the airport.

• At Prague Airport there is an official elevated position for spotters with the viewing platform near Kněževes.
• All the important spots, directions and runway configurations are summarized in the article Plane spotting in Prague.
• Practical notes on the museum as a spotting destination are on the spot page Letecké muzeum Kbely.

If you are planning a museum trip through Central Europe, you can combine Kbely well with other venues: the Polish Aviation Museum in Kraków, the Flugplatzmuseum Cottbus, the Military History Museum Berlin-Gatow or the Aviaticum Wiener Neustadt. Cottbus and Gatow in particular complement Kbely well, because many Eastern Bloc types stand there too.

Conclusion

The Prague-Kbely Aviation Museum is a must-visit for anyone interested in aviation behind the former Iron Curtain. On the airfield where Czechoslovak military aviation began in 1918, it tells the story in historic halls, from the biplanes of the First Republic through the Czech copies of the Me 262 and Bf 109 to the MiG-29. With the ČSA Tu-104A, the Soyuz 28 capsule and the Stará Aerovka branch, civil aviation, spaceflight and industrial history are added.

Plan your visit within the season, take at least half a day and combine Kbely with a spotting day at Prague Airport. And since admission costs nothing, there is also nothing against a second visit.