Al Mahatta Museum – The Complete Guide

The Al Mahatta Museum is an aviation museum dedicates to flights and flying, from man’s first attempts to fly through flying into space and the moon by UAE in the past. It is present within Sharjah’s original airport structure.

The museum is notable for its one-of-a-kind memorabilia that chronicle the history of aviation from man’s first attempts to fly to the first landing on the moon. Information boards and charts, as well as models of the Douglas C-47 G-AMZZ airplane, the DC-3 G-AMZZ airplane, the de Havilland DH.114 Heron G-ANFE airplane, and the Avro Anson G-AKVW airplane, are on display at the museum, which opens in the year 2000. As well as authentic airplane equipment such as a black box is on show at the museum. Along with the original refueling tanker, the original propeller planes stand guard in the hangar. It also houses the Gulf region’s first cinema, which was open in 1945.

Al Mahatta Museum – About

The Al Mahatta Museum opens in 2000 and houses within Sharjah’s first airport building, is an aviation museum that highlights the history of flight in the UAE and the area. In the 1930s, the airport served as a stopover for commercial flights from the United Kingdom to India. Sheikh Sultan Bin Saqr built The Fort as a rest break for the crew and passengers during the overnight stay. On the 5th of October 1932, a passenger flight from London’s Croydon airport to India made its first stopover in Sharjah.

The British Royal Air Force built its own facilities and enlarged the runway close to The Fort in 1940. In 1956, a new Control Tower was built and began operations. A new Control Tower was built in 1956 and functions until 1977 when the new Sharjah International Airport opened. The fort was abandoned after this period and was renovated and inaugurated as a museum in 2000.

The Al Mahatta Museum site is a stunning example of a contemporary 20th-century castle built with local traditional building techniques and materials. It’s one-of-a-kind because of the combination of modern military architecture with the local buildings. Only a few high-level windows face the externally in the original 1932 building, which was plans around a single courtyard with all doors and windows facing internally. Two different watchtowers sat on the building’s diagonal corners, allowing for surveillance and, if necessary, defense. ‘The Fort’ is the nickname of this museum.

For more information, visit their official site. 

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Al Mahatta Museum – Location

Al Mahatta Museum Address: Al Mahatta area, opp. of Al Qasimya District, The General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs office besides, Sharjah, UAE.

The Al Mahatta Museum is a museum in Sharjah’s Al Qasimia neighborhood, 16 kilometers from Sharjah International Airport and 15 kilometers from Dubai International Airport. It is one of Sharjah’s most popular museums.

Insider tip: Hiring a taxi will be highly recommendable.

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Al Mahatta Museum – Visiting Times

Here is the detailed information on visiting times for the museum as well as the other time information.

Opening Hours:

Sat to Thus: 8 am to 8 pm

Friday: 4 pm to 10 pm

Total Time required for visiting: 1 hour

Best Time to visit: 10 am till 6 pm

Insider Tip: It remains close on Ramdan, the First day of Eid Al Adha, and national holidays.

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Al Mahatta Museum – Entrance Fees

The ticket details of the museum are thus the following:

Children (2 – 12 years): AED 5

Adults (13+ years): AED 10

Contact Number: +971 – 65733079 

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