Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Bourget terminal, located in Dugny, Seine-Saint-Denis, was built by architect Georges Labro for the 1937 Universal Exhibition. This Art Deco building, 233 metres long, symbolized French aeronautical modernity. Damaged during the 1944 bombings, it was reconstructed identically between 1946 and 1952 under the direction of the same architect, in collaboration with Paris Airport. Its facade decorated with female statues of Armand Martial illustrates the intercontinental destinations of the period (New York, Hanoi, Dakar).

Originally conceived as a passenger terminal for Bourget Airport – the first French civilian airport created in 1919 – the terminal loses its original function with the decline in commercial traffic after 1970. Since 1973, it has hosted the collections of the Air and Space Museum (MAE), founded in 1919 and transferred from Chalais-Meudon. The "Grand Gallery", inaugurated in 1987 in the restored terminal, now exhibits a unique collection of historical aircraft, from aviation pioneers (Bleriot XI, Demoiselle de Santos-Dumont) to prototypes of the space era (Diamant rocket, Soyuz capsule).

Classified as a historical monument in 1994, the terminal is the golden age of civil aviation in the 1930s. Its monumental architecture, marked by rigorous symmetry and noble materials (stone, reinforced concrete), reflects France's ambition in the aeronautical field. The site, shared between the municipalities of Dugny, Le Bourget and Bonneuil-en-France, remains a major place of aviation memory, also hosting the International Aeronautics Exhibition since 1953.

The museum's reserves, located in Dugny, conserve more than 40,000 objects and 150 aircraft, some of which were damaged by fire in 1990. The media library, enriched in 2023, offers an exceptional documentary collection (500,000 photographs, 28,000 books since the 16th century). The terminal, restored in 2019 for the centenary of the MAE, prepares its future with the arrival of the Grand Paris Express (line 17 in 2027) and projects like the Astreos hall dedicated to civil aviation post-1945.

The museum pays tribute to major aviation figures, such as Alberto Santos-Dumont, Georges Guynemer or Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, whose personal devices or effects are displayed. The collections cover all the eras, from the 18th century hot air balloons (maquette of the first inhabited ascent in 1783) to supersonic aircraft (Concorde 001, Mirage III). Space dedicated to the conquest of space presents rare pieces, such as the engine of a V2 rocket or a replica of Ariane 5.

The terminal, surrounded by historic hangars designed by Henri Lossier (1922), forms a coherent architectural ensemble despite the destructions of the Second World War. The monument to test pilots (1957) and the statue commemorating transatlantic flights (1928), works by Paul Langellé and Gustave Michel, highlight the memorial dimension of the site. Today, the Bourget combines industrial heritage, museum innovation and contemporary issues, with a visitor project targeting 500,000 annual visitors by 2027.

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