Air Force Museum!!!

On Saturday I paid my first visit to the Swedish Air Force museum, which is actually right on the outskirts of town and only about a 10-minute bike ride from my building. The place wasn't enormous but it was by far the most interesting thing I've seen since coming here (that's going to change very, very soon). Aviation has played a large role in the history of Linköping. Though the city itself has been here for a while, it underwent a cultural and economic transformation when, one day, Saab Aerospace decided that it would be a good place for a plant. Saab actually manufactured a lot of the jets in the museum, though the first fighters and trainers of the Swedish Air Force were actually purchased from the UK and France. Just to show you how quickly the Europeans caught onto aviation, the Wright Brothers first set flight in 1903. Sweden bought its first trainer from I believe it was the UK, might have been France, in 1907. The US government first denounced the idea of air defense as folly. My camera battery ran out ten minutes into our visit, so I will be going back soon to take more pictures.

This plane was on display right outside of the entrance and I believe it is the Saab 32 Larsen, though I could be wrong as I may have forgotten exactly what the sign next to it said. The blue emblem with the three gold crowns is the emblem of the Swedish Air force.

Most of the planes you see in the picture are not models, they are former in-service aircraft. Some of the more recent ones even had the artillery still attached (but I'm sure not loaded). There were some that we could walk inside of and many of the engines were reverse-engineered and on display. It was interesting to see the progression from in-line cylinders to rotary-style to current jet engines. Actually, the planes inside were arranged chronologically and the side railing was measured out to be as long as the Wright Brothers' first flight.

In other news, the Exchange Student Network put on a Welcome Dinner for all exchange students on Saturday night and served up what was probably the best meal I'll have on Swedish soil. Then Sunday night I visited my peer student and got my first taste of Swedish delivery pizza, in stark contrast to Allison's dining at a 17th-century pub. This weekend I will finally get my first chance to do some actual travelling as I am booked to spend the weekend with seven other students in Copenhagen. It's going to be a blast.