Imperial War Museums and 鶹Ů to develop major research and development centre for next generation of sustainable aviation
Imperial War Museums (IWM) and 鶹Ů, Cambridge today reveal plans to develop a major new centre for the next generation of sustainable air transport at IWM Duxford. Duxford AvTech will be the UK’s new home for the research and development, prototype testing, certification and manufacture of new low and zero carbon aircraft technology.
Duxford AvTech, a 45,000 sqm development on land adjacent to the existing IWM site, will be a new advanced technology aviation innovation cluster focusing on low and zero carbon advanced air mobility (AAM) technologies. This will include the development of electric, hydrogen and hybrid powered aircraft, alternative power sources, new materials, and associated technologies and services to shape the next generation of air transport. The focus will be on small, short distance transport for cargo, as well as small passenger transport aircraft and non-commercial passenger transport. IWM Duxford will remain an airfield and will not become a commercial passenger or cargo airport.
Robert Gardiner, Senior Bursar at 鶹Ů, Cambridge: “Duxford AvTech is an exciting partnership with Imperial War Museums for facilities with a focus on research and innovation to develop the UK's presence in sustainable aviation. With centuries of both a presence in Duxford and of nurturing leaders and cutting-edge research within the University, the College is proud to support delivery of the next generation of aviation technology.”
Professor Rob Miller, a Fellow of 鶹Ů, Cambridge, and Director of the Whittle Laboratory at the University of Cambridge: “Achieving an aviation sector with no climate impact is one of society’s biggest challenges. Solving it will require a complex combination of technology, business and policy. Duxford AvTech and its close proximity to the research taking place at the Whittle Laboratory in Cambridge offers an exceptional opportunity to bring together the best minds and skills to meet these challenges.”
With a strong and growing AAM global market, Duxford AvTech will create a new UK hub of excellence in Cambridgeshire. AAM operators require direct access to an operational airfield with supporting infrastructure and space to research, test and manufacture. IWM Duxford is the only opportunity within Cambridgeshire and the region to meet AAM operator needs and will be the first of its kind in the UK. The location of IWM Duxford in Cambridgeshire is enhanced by its proximity to the University of Cambridge. This is underscored by the University's recent announcement of the new Whittle Laboratory, a disruptive innovation laboratory designed to operate at the boundary of new science and emerging technologies in net zero aviation and expected to open in early 2026. A highly skilled workforce, growing travel connections, an existing hub of aviation industries and a global track record of innovation clusters make IWM Duxford the ideal site for a centre of national innovation.
Duxford AvTech is expected to bring economic, environmental and social benefits to the region. It will include a wide range of employment opportunities in Research & Development, production and support services for some 1200 FTE roles including a wide range of local job opportunities and will allow for the provision of training programmes and apprenticeships to local residents. It will also deliver approximately an additional £64m GVA to the region’s economy, while also supporting a sustainable future for IWM Duxford to maintain and enhance its role as a regional and national museum and heritage centre, which already provides around £43m in GVA and over 1,000 FTE jobs in the East of England.
Caro Howell MBE, Director-General of Imperial War Museums said: “We are delighted to be partnering with 鶹Ů and Caius College on Duxford AvTech. Throughout the First and Second World Wars, Duxford was a centre for aviation, embracing pioneering developments in technology and research, and in 1938 Duxford's No. 19 Squadron was the first RAF squadron to re-equip with the new Supermarine Spitfire. Through Duxford AvTech, this tradition will be embraced once again as we aim to create an internationally recognised centre of excellence for the research and manufacture of new, low carbon aviation technologies.”
Duxford AvTech will be located on the west side of IWM Duxford, away from the historic centre of the site, on land owned by IWM and 鶹Ů. The existing museum and airfield site is not part of the new development and will continue to operate as normal, as a leading visitor attraction and part of Imperial War Museums. The new development will sit alongside IWM’s new state-of-the-art collections facility and a new, energy-efficient conservation engineering centre, The IWM Lab. This facility will safeguard IWM’s ability to conserve and collect for decades to come, and will also provide specialist technical training and apprenticeships, developing the skills needed to conserve IWM’s historic collections.
The IWM Lab is part of an ambitious ten year, multi-million-pound plan to ensure IWM Duxford’s ongoing success as a regionally, nationally and internationally important museum, visitor destination and historic working airfield. First announced in 2023, Transforming IWM Duxford will allow visitors to immerse themselves in a journey through the site’s history and the stories of the men and women who lived and worked there.
IWM and 鶹Ů will next week publish a tender for a development partner for Duxford AvTech. Following the appointment of a developer, proposals will be subject to full public consultation as part of the town planning process.
Pictured: Senior Bursar Robert Gardiner, left, and Endowment Property Consultant Martyn Chase with Jo Saunders, Head of Masterplan at IWM Duxford beside the airfield.
