Champlin Fighter Museum

The Champlin Fighter Museum was an aviation museum in Mesa that displayed a large collection of military aircraft from the First and Second World Wars. The collection included well-known fighter planes such as the Curtiss P-40 Warhawk and the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, all housed at a former airport facility.

The museum was founded to preserve and display fighter aircraft from the major wars of the 20th century. After operating for 22 years, it closed in 2003 and transferred its entire collection to the Museum of Flight in Seattle.

The museum served as a learning center where visitors could understand how aircraft evolved during the world wars and why these machines mattered to the conflicts. This helped many people connect aviation technology to the broader history of the 20th century.

The museum was located at a clearly marked address and was easy to reach on foot, with aircraft displayed both outdoors and under protective structures. Visitors could walk through at their own pace and examine the planes from different angles.

The museum employed skilled craftspeople who restored and maintained historical fighter planes to preserve them for the future. These restoration efforts meant visitors could see the aircraft in authentic working condition.

Location: Arizona

GPS coordinates: 33.45480,-111.73100

Latest update: December 8, 2025 21:00