Seven Interesting Things You Should Know About TMM

Visitors to The Military Museums (TMM) in Calgary, will find themselves immersed in a world of military history. The Museum is home to a collection that is second-to-none and features uniforms, weapons, and other artifacts from every era of Canada's military past.

The museum also features several interactive exhibits that bring to life the experience of soldiers both on and off the battlefield. From the gritty trenches of World War I to the icy training grounds of the Arctic, the Museum offers a fascinating glimpse into the lives of Canada's brave men and women who have served their country so valiantly.

Featuring exhibits on the First and Second World Wars, as well as the Korean War and Afghanistan conflict, Here are seven of the most interesting things you should know about TMM:

1. The Military Museums is the largest tri-service museum in Western Canada and the second-largest military museum in Canada. It consists of eight distinct museums and galleries, including the Naval, Army, and AirForce Museums of Alberta, the four Regimental Army museums, and The Founders' Gallery.

2) There is a complete CF-5 Freedom Fighter plane on display built by Canadair in Montreal, Quebec in 1968. The Museum received the aircraft from the Department of National Defence in November 2005 and erected it in May 2007. Col Don Matthews (ret'd) of the Air Force Museum Society of Alberta flew this particular CF-5 aircraft on seven occasions at CFB Cold Lake in 1974, 1985, and 1987.

3. The museum also features the CF-104 plane on exhibit in the Cold War Hangars. It made its first flight on the 2nd of October, 1962 at Cartierville, Quebec. It was the 146th CF-104 of the 200 single-seat aircraft ordered by the RCAF to fulfill its NATO commitment in Europe. The aircraft was purchased by the Air Force Museum Society of Alberta in 2012 and transported by truck to Calgary in June 2013 where an extensive restoration (5,000 hours) took place. The aircraft has been restored to its original look as it was first seen in the skies over Europe.

4) You can see uniforms and weapons from every era of Canadian military history on display.

5) The museum has one of the largest collections of model tanks in Canada. The complete suite of vehicles based on the Leopard C2 tank chassis which includes the main gun tank, the ARV (Armoured Recovery Vehicle), the AEV (Armoured Engineering Vehicle), and the Armoured Vehicle-Launched Bridge (AVLB) is on display at the Museum.

6) Also on display is the Enigma Machine situated in the Naval museum gallery. This particular machine is known as the Enigma-K and was introduced in 1927. Because it was built by the Swiss, its box is slightly different from the German design and lacks the 'Enigma' nameplate of German machines. Unlike the war-time Kriegsmarine Enigmas, this style only had three rotors and a reflector disk on the left and was comparatively easy to break. However, it was still used by the Swiss Army and the Italian Navy throughout the war. So who knows? It could have ridden under the waves in an Italian submarine or jostled around in the back of a Swiss communications truck!

7)The Last perk? Admission is free for veterans and serving military personnel, seniors, and children under seven. The Museum offers educational tours for school groups and other organizations.

Ready to come for a visit? Click here for more information on opening times: https://themilitarymuseums.ca/visit/visitor-information