The aeronautical adventure - Toulouse Tourisme

Toulouse has been the cradle of aeronautics since 1890, when local engineer Clément Ader launched the very first heavier-than-air motorised aircraft.
During the First World War, Pierre-Georges Latécoère set up the first aircraft manufacturing plant in the Montaudran quarter of Toulouse. On the same site, with the creation in 1927 of the aviation company l’Aéropostale under the management of Didier Daurat, the great aeronautical adventure began under the leadership of its illustrious pilots: Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Jean Mermoz and Henri Guillaumet, who opened the iconic air routes for transporting mail: Toulouse to Saint Louis in Senegal and Toulouse to Santiago in Chile.

La Piste des Géants (The Runway of Giants)

L’Envol des Pionniers

Stroll along the Runway of Giants on the very spot from which these intrepid adventurers took off. At the end of the runway, the Envol des Pioneers museum retraces the history of this adventure, bringing to life the first-hand accounts of the pilots, as well as the mechanics and engine stringers, and discover the life-size model of the Salmson 2A2 biplane, the first aircraft to be built industrially in Toulouse.

The Jardins de la Ligne have been laid out along the runway. Covering 3 hectares, these gardens recreate the landscapes of the three continents crossed by the Aéropostale routes: Europe, Africa and South America.

The Runway of Giants continues to provide fantastic adventures to this day with the Minotaur ride, a creature imagined and created by François Delaroziere of the Compagnie de la Machine. Visit the Hall of La Machine on the other side of the track and discover the company’s strange performing machines.

6 Rue Jacqueline Auriol, 31400 Toulouse

The aeronautical museum

Aeroscopia Museum

With the boom in air transport from the 1950s onwards and the constant desire to rise to technical and human challenges, Toulouse was the birthplace of the Caravelle, the world’s first mass-produced civil twin-engine jet, Concorde, the supersonic jet that reached a cruising speed of Mach 2, the A380, the four-engine jet with a double deck, and many more.…

Visit all these legendary aircraft at the Aeroscopia aeronautical museum, just a stone’s throw from the Airbus factories in Blagnac. You can even admire an X-Wing Starfighter from Star Wars!

Next door to the museum, you can discover Les Ailes Anciennes. This association recovers and restores aircraft of all sizes. Meet the volunteers and share their passion for flying machines.

1 Allée André Turcat, 31700 Blagnac

The biggest manufacturer in Europe

Airbus

Get to the heart of the jet engine with a visit to the Airbus factories. A unique opportunity to discover the latest generation of aircraft from the leading European aircraft manufacturer.

Guided tours of the factories can only be booked through Let’s Visit Airbus.

Allée André Turcat, 31700 Blagnac