Families looking to introduce their little ones to the exciting world of aviation will find endless possibilities at the Harry Reid Airport exhibit inside Discovery Children’s Museum. 

Located within the museum’s environmentally-friendly Eco City, the interactive airport exhibit features hands-on activities that demonstrate what life is like inside an airport. 

“We are incredibly proud to have an exhibit that gives kids that hands-on look at what it takes to be a part of an airport — what are the jobs they can have, what are the different functions of an airport in a community — and then getting them thinking creatively about what it means to travel and to fly,” said Caitlin Shea, vice president for development at Discovery Children’s Museum. “For a lot of children, they may not have had that experience yet, depending on how small they are, so this is just a really fun sneak peak at what they can expect when they do go to an airport.”

Inside the exhibit, kids will see uniforms, along with a list of the different jobs performed by people at the airport. They can dress up as pilots and ground crew, and there’s real luggage and a screening machine where kids can examine the bags and role play as TSA agents and baggage handlers. 

In the cockpit area, aspiring aviators can operate the different controls and communicate via radio. 

“One of the kids’ favorite things to do is being a pilot,” said Cecelia Rumsey-Mace, early childhood manager at the museum. “They also can design their own paper airplanes then test their designs and see how far they will fly.”

In addition to hands-on activities, kids can study panels that tell the story of the airport’s history in our community. A sustainability display allows them to learn about eco-friendly practices at the airport through sight and touch.  

For an even closer look at LAS, video in the exhibit plays actual footage from around the terminals. 

And for little travel enthusiasts, there’s an interactive world map where children can select a destination then see the time it takes to fly there from Las Vegas, as well as the miles covered. Once they’ve chosen a destination, the map shows hot spots and fun facts about the city. 

For more information about Discovery Children’s Museum, click discoverykidslv.org.