Aerospace Museum of California

Set on the grounds of the former McClellan Air Force Base, the Aerospace Museum of California occupies a site shaped by decades of U.S. Air Force logistics and maintenance work. Originating in 1982 as the Air Force Logistics Museum of the West and later the McClellan Aviation Museum, it grew out of the base’s own heritage, with many aircraft transferred on indefinite loan from the Air Force when McClellan closed under BRAC. That continuity gives the collection particular value for those interested in how front-line aircraft were supported, overhauled, and kept in the air. The museum’s 4.5-acre air park and Hardie Setzer Pavilion bring together military, commercial, and private aircraft, allowing close study of design changes across eras and services. An extensive engine collection, from World War I rotary units to Cold War turbojets such as the J57 and J58 used on the SR-71, highlights the technological progression that underpinned airpower. Within the Sacramento region’s broader military landscape, the museum preserves both the machinery and the institutional memory of a major air logistics center.