National Aerospace Library
- Advice on accessing these materials
- Archives Hub Features
- Web
- Telephone
- +44 (0)1252 701038/60
- Address
- The Hub, Fowler Avenue, Farnborough Business Park, Farnborough, Hampshire, GU14 7JP, England, United Kingdom
- Opening Hours
- Tuesdays to Fridays, 10am-4pm.
- Public Internet Access
- The National Aerospace Library is one of the world's most extensive libraries devoted to the development of aeronautics, aviation and aerospace technology. The RAeS library houses rare book collections, contemporary journals and books, and a repository of aviation images and photographs. E-books are also available to members of the RAeS.
- Facilities for Disabled Persons
- Ramps from library to car parking spaces and disabled toilet close by.
- Refreshment Area
- Cafe close by.
- Archival and Other Holdings
The archive of the Royal Aeronautical Society not only includes minute books and membership records, but also includes an invaluable historic letters collection correspondence with many of the influential names in nineteenth and early twentieth century aeronautics including the Wright Brothers, Samuel Cody, Samuel Langley, Octave Chanute, Lawrence Hargrave, J.W. Dunne, A.V Row, Lord Rayleigh, Sir Frederick Handley Page, Santos Dumont, Gustav Lilienthal, F.W. Lanchester, James Glaisher and Sir Geoffrey de Havilland. The NAL also cares for personal collection of many of its Fellows and others, including Sir George Cayley, CG Grey, BFS Baden Powell, Harald Penrose and Percy Pilcher. It also provides a home for material from the British & Colonial Aircraft Company, the Bristol Aviation Company, the Civil Aviation Authority Library and the Society of British Aircraft Constructors.
- History
The Royal Aeronautical Society was formed in 1866 to pursue “Man’s dream to conquer flight”. Since then the Society has become a home for aerospace professionals and pioneers who are interested in perfecting man experience of operating above ground level. These include engineers, pilots, airline operators, balloonists, lawyers, astronautical engineers, UAVs and doctors. The Society's library, now called the National Aerospace Library, contains the archive of the Society together with the personal collection of many of its Fellows and others, together with material from a number of corporate collections
- Notes
- Cafe close by.
- The aeronautical and other papers of Major BFS Baden-Powell Hon FRAeS
- Aeronautical Collections of Kathleen, Countess of Drogheda
- The aeronautical diaries, logbooks and drawings of Air Chief Marshal Sir Roderic Hill
- The aeronautical history research files of Harald Penrose
- Aeronautical papers of Air Cdre. E. M. Maitland
- The aeronautical papers of George William Saynor
- The aeronautical papers of Lieut. Col. F. A. G. Noel
- Aeronautical papers of Percy S. Pilcher
- Air Safety Group Archive
- The aircraft design calculations and other papers of W. O. Manning
- British European Airways research and development reports
- Civil Aviation Authority publications archive
- Correspondence containing personal accounts of the first east-west flight across the Atlantic on the airship R.34, together with photocopies of material from Public Record Office and elsewhere
- Council and Committee minutes of the Society of Licenced Aircraft Engineers and Technologists
- The early aeronautical papers of Brigadier Philip William Lilian Broke-Smith
- The Horace Short notebook containing technical drawings of the Wright Brother's Wright A aircraft
- Kronfeld Ltd, Managing Director's memorandums, cuttings and maps
- Lawrence Hargrave photograph albums
- Material on early military aviation collected by Sir Robert Brooke-Popham
- Minutes of the United Kingdom Industrial Space Committee
- The notebooks and other papers of Sir George Cayley.
- The papers of A. P. Thurston
- The papers of G. Tilghman Richards
- The personal correspondence of C G Grey
- Personal papers of Delphine Reynolds relating to her attempted London to Cape Town fight of 1931 and other flying activities
- Personal papers of Peggy Salaman relating to her record-breaking London to Cape Town fight of 1931.
- Records of the British and Colonial Aeroplane Company Limited and the Bristol Aeroplane Company
- The records of the Royal Aeronautical Society
- Relics of Lt. Wilfred Parke RN
- Reports and files from Capt. A. M. A Majendie whilst British Overseas Airways Corporation's Flight Captain for the de Havilland Comet Fleet.
- Reports and other aeronautical papers of A. V. "Val" Cleaver whilst at the Propeller Division of the de Havilland Aircraft Company.
- Reports produced by Ogilvie & Partners Ltd
- Research material collected by G. A. Broomfield, biographer of Samuel Cody
- Royal Aeronautical Society Historic Letters Collection
- The Society of British Aircraft Constructors Ltd Archive