Combat Air Museum

The Combat Air Museum at Forbes Field in Topeka, Kansas, displays one of the largest collections of vintage military aircraft in the Great Plains region, housed in two large hangars at the Topeka Regional Airport (Forbes Field), eight miles southeast of downtown Topeka. The museum was founded in 1976 by aviation enthusiasts and operates primarily with volunteer staff and member support. The collection spans nearly a century of American military aviation, from a replica World War I Nieuport fighter to Cold War-era jet fighters, and currently includes approximately 50 to 60 aircraft at any given time, supplemented by aviation engines, uniforms, weapons systems, and cockpit artifacts. Signature aircraft in the permanent collection have included a Curtiss P-40 Warhawk, an F-86 Sabre, a T-33 training jet, a U-2 spy plane, and several Korean and Vietnam-era fighters. The hangar arrangement allows visitors to walk between and beneath the aircraft with few barriers, and cockpit access is permitted on selected static display aircraft. A dedicated ground-floor restoration area is often visible through windows, where volunteer mechanics work on aircraft in various stages of restoration. The museum spans both indoor hangar displays and an outdoor static park where larger aircraft and missiles are displayed on the tarmac. Admission is modest; children under 5 are free. The museum's Topeka location places it near the Kansas State Capitol and the Brown v. Board of Education site for a full day of itinerary options in the capital.