Geoffrey Morrison / CNET
I stand in front of a locked gate and a barbed wire fence. This is definitely the place to be. I can see some Soviet-era helicopters through the fence. The next one even says "CCCP" (the Russian abbreviation for the former Soviet Union) in large letters on the side. A dilapidated gatehouse and overgrown bushes are further signs that the Riga Aviation Museum is not a traditional tourist attraction.
Next to a sign that reads "Call and wait!" in English, and what I assume is the same message in both Latvian and Russian. Then I notice the gate is ajar, so I step inside and feel like I'm doing something illegal. An older gentleman comes and says "seven euros". I pay without realizing that this is the founder of the museum. He nods and walks away. I am free to explore on my own. I walk down a dirt road past the red Mil Mi-4 that I saw from the gate and enter a world full of MiGs, Sukhois, Antonovs and more. It is one of the largest collections of Soviet aircraft outside of Russia. This is going to be a fun afternoon.
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Note thatI plan to visit this fascinating museumpandemic. Hopefully we can all travel again and you can visit it yourself. What follows is what it was like to explore this unique place.
Soviet aviation history exhibited in the Riga Aviation Museum
Baltic beauties
Latvia on the Baltic Sea between Lithuania and Estonia was part of the Soviet Union from World War II until 1991. The locals often prefer to describe this period as "occupied by Russia". There aren't many signs of that era, however. A few scattered buildings show evidence of this blocky Soviet brutalist design, but that's it. Riga is the largest city in the three Baltic countries, but still small by European capital city standards. The old town is a delightful mixture of new, medieval and Art Nouveau buildings.
It's weird to take the bus to the airport and then walk away from the terminal instead of getting on a flight. But this is how you get to the Riga Aviation Museum. If you walk down an access road you can see planes over some trees and bushes so you know you are heading in the right direction.
There are many aircraft in the museum that are rare in the west. The collection consists almost entirely of Eastern Bloc planes with several supersonic fighter planes from the Cold War era, passenger planes, military helicopters and much more. Have you ever seen a Czechoslovak jet trainer? They made thousands and there are several in the museum.
The massive Mil Mi-6 is the real draw here. You could put every other helicopter in the museum under the span of the -6s rotors. It was the largest military helicopter and the fastest until it was replaced by the even larger Mi-26. It is said that the transmission is heavier than the engines. There is also an early Mi-24 Hind attack / transport helicopter. These are rare in museums in the west and this is an even rarer early variant with the box-shaped cockpit glass instead of the more recognizable bubbles.
Geoffrey Morrison / CNET
Although the museum has a Tupolev Tu-22 bomber and a Tu-134 passenger jet, due to lack of space, these planes are on the other side of the runway, not only inaccessible, but also not visible. Well
Latvian love work
The Riga Aviation Museum exists almost entirely because of one man, Victor Talpa, the gentleman I unknowingly met when I walked into the museum. He's the founder, curator, and manager, which makes it a one-man show. The museum is all the more impressive. The Baltic winters have certainly taken their toll on some aircraft, almost turning the museum into a boneyard, but not entirely. That doesn't make it any less interesting. Really, it's like another world winding its way through aging Soviet planes.
Geoffrey Morrison / CNET
There really isn't another museum like this anywhere else. Strolling through the boneyard at the Yanks Air Museum or the much larger AMARG in the Arizona desert can see a similar vibe. With such a focus on planes from the Soviet and Eastern bloc, Riga is an entirely different experience. As always, my only wish would be to have access to the interiors of some aircraft, especially the Mi-6. However, this is quite rare in any aviation museum.
If we can all travel again it will be very easy to get to the Riga Aviation Museum as it is only a few minutes walk from the airport. For now, check out the gallery and video above.
In addition to covering TV and other display technologies, Geoff also runs photo tours of cool museums and locations around the world, including nuclear submarines, massive aircraft carriers, medieval castles, aircraft graveyards, and more.
You can follow his exploits on Instagram and YouTube, as well as on his travel blog, BaldNomad. He also wrote a bestselling science fiction novel about city-size submarines, as well as a sequel.
