Tomorrow’s Aeronautical Museum (TAM) is a living classroom that brings aviation history to life and empowers the dreams of underprivileged youth to literally take flight. Located in South Los Angeles, TAM features interactive exhibits that explore racial diversity in the evolution of modern flight, as well as a Sky Lab computer center, Tuskegee Airmen Learning Center, and operating and static display aircraft. TAM’s nonprofit flight academy and afterschool programs provide STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) instruction and compelling alternatives to drugs, gangs and violence.

Find out more about TAM's founder, Robin Petgrave.

The Flight Path Learning Center & Museum is located in the LAX Imperial Terminal, on the south side of the airport. The facility opened in 2003 to coincide with the 75th anniversary of LAX and the 100th anniversary of the first powered flight by the Wright Brothers. The museum features a restored DC-3 that you can board, a huge collection of model airplanes, vintage airline uniforms, Howard Hughes memorabilia and a model of his famous Spruce Goose. Aviation scholars should set aside time for the William A. Schoneberger Research Library, with its collection of aviation and aerospace books, technical manuals and other publications. The Flight Path Learning Center & Museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., except for major holidays. Admission and parking are free.

Located in historic Exposition Park in Downtown L.A., the California Science Center features air and space exhibits that follow aviation history from its origins to the exploration of “the final frontier.” Displays at the museum include a replica of the 1902 Wright Glider, an A-12 Blackbird spy plane, and a trio of NASA space capsules. Your journey through the history of flight culminates with the Space Shuttle Endeavour, on public display in the Samuel Oschin Endeavour Display Pavilion.

The Museum of Flying is one of Santa Monica’s hidden gems, located on the south side of Santa Monica Airport. The museum features 22,000 square feet of exhibits that trace the history of flight as well as Southern California’s aviation and aerospace industries. Visitors usually begin their experience in the Early Aviation Hangar Bay, where the star attraction is a Wright Flyer replica that was featured in the Ben Stiller movie, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian. Most of the museum’s aircraft are located in the Aircraft Display Gallery, which features a rotating exhibit of aircraft on the floor as well as suspended above. The Children’s Area offers young pilots hands-on experiences such as open cockpits and a kid-friendly flight simulator.

The 94th Aero Squadron Restaurant is located adjacent to Van Nuys Airport, offering expansive views of aircraft taking off and landing from the nearby runway. Historic aviation memorabilia ranges from the vintage airplane in front of the restaurant to the wall-mounted flight gear and model planes inside. There are even headphones installed at each booth, so guests can listen to live transmissions from the airport's control tower. The lunch menu offers hot and cold sandwiches and a variety of fresh salads, while dinner features traditional entrées such as prime rib, Filet Mignon, Shrimp Scampi and salmon. The popular Champagne Sunday Brunch offers a lavish buffet that includes made-to-order pasta and omelets, carving stations, and crab legs.

The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library & Museum offers spectacular views from its hilltop location in Simi Valley. The Reagan Library is one of L.A.’s most unique cultural attractions, featuring exhibits, a replica of the Oval Office, a section of the Berlin Wall, and much more. Inside the Air Force One Pavilion, you can step aboard the same aircraft that flew President Reagan over 660,000 miles – 26 foreign countries and 46 U.S.states. The “Flying White House,” tail number 27000, served seven U.S Presidents from 1973 to 2001, including Presidents Nixon, Carter, Ford, Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Clinton and George W. Bush. From Air Force One, President Reagan hand-wrote many of his speeches, signed important legislation, and even officially started a NASCAR race via phone. The pavilion also features a 120-foot mural that represents all 22 aircraft that have ever flown a U.S. president, and an actual Marine One helicopter that flew President Johnson.