Following its latest €5 million redevelopment, Foynes Flying Boat and Maritime Museum is now the largest of its kind in the world!
New additions include an interactive library that features flight simulators, aviation publications dating back to the 1930s, a wealth of information on air disasters, and a 100-seater cinema showing old reels charting the region’s rich aviation history.
Opening the latest phase, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar enthused: “This is one of my favourite museums in Ireland, and which tells the remarkable story of how Foynes pioneered trans-atlantic flight.
“I believe attractions like this wonderful museum will help to encourage more visits to the region by sea and by air, thus strengthening Shannon Airport and Shannon Foynes Port. It also ties in well with our plans to re-open the railway line between Limerick and Foynes.”
“The investment is an example of how we can achieve great things if we work together, and it demonstrates our commitment to helping our rural communities go from strength to strength in line with the national rural development policy, Our Rural Future,” commented Minister Heather Humphreys.
Said Tourism Minister Catherine Martin: “The museum provides local employment and also supports sustainable tourism development by drawing visitors to a rural region of Ireland.”
Eamonn Brennan, Board Chairman, stated: “We are working to create more employment as an all-year-round tourism, educational, research and cultural attraction, and provide conference and event space for the many companies based in the west Limerick area.”
An element of the latest development incorporates the Maureen O’Hara Exhibition, celebrating the late actor’s career achieve-ments, her personal memorabilia, and her family links to the Museum (through her late husband Captain Charles Blair).
Founding Director Margaret O’Shaughnessy concluded: “We are delighted to continue to expand our visitor attraction beyond the museum and to establish ourselves as a globally known location for aviation enthusiasts, scholars and researchers with our expansive library and archive collection, as well as being the only place in the world where one can step on board an exact replica of a Boeing 314 Clipper flying boat ‘The Yankee Clipper’.”