Thousands of visitors, unique aircraft, a unique exhibition, and the moving stories of people who save lives from the air every day – this was the scene of this year’s Long Night of Museums at the Polish Aviation Museum in Krakow. The event, held under the slogan “Sky Rescuers,” focused on the history and present of air rescue services.
From the first evening hours, the Museum spaces were filled with visitors who could participate in a rich program prepared together with partners representing emergency services, the military, uniformed services and rescue communities from all over Poland.
One of the focal points of the event was the board exhibition “Sky Rescuers,” presenting the history of rescue and medical aviation and the activities of such organizations as TOPR (Top Search and Rescue), GOPR (Mountain Volunteer Search and Rescue), Polish Air Ambulance (LWA), the Police, the Border Guard, the State Fire Service, military search and rescue teams, and the Medical Evacuation Team.
Particularly noteworthy were the unique photographs documenting real-life rescue operations in the mountains, during disasters, floods, and medical transports. The exhibition offered a glimpse into aviation from the perspective of service, sacrifice, and the daily struggle for human life.
One of the most moving moments of this year’s Night of Museums was the ceremony of handing over memorabilia of Polish Air Rescue pilot Janusz Cygański, who died during a rescue mission in 2009.
The ceremony took place on the mezzanine floor of Hangar No. 5, next to a display case dedicated to the Polish Air Rescue Service (PAS) and a specially displayed tail beam from a TOPR helicopter that crashed in the Tatra Mountains on August 11, 1994.
The memorabilia were presented to Polish Aviation Museum Director Tomasz Kosecki by the pilot’s son, Karol Cygański, and his widow, Emilia Cygańska, along with his family. The museum collections included decorations awarded posthumously to Janusz Cygański, a commemorative PAS badge, and a fragment of the Mi-2 Plus SP-ZXC helicopter’s nameplate found at the crash site.
The ceremony became a symbolic tribute to the people of air rescue, who often risk their own lives in serving others.
Afterward, visitors were invited to the ground floor of Hangar No. 5, where meetings and lectures devoted to the history of air rescue took place.
Marek Siuta, a paramedic and our Museum guide, delivered a lecture entitled “Patient on the Wing, Doctor on the Ground – The Beginnings of Air Rescue in Poland,” while TOPR pilot Henryk Serda spoke about the realities of the service and the specifics of mountain rescue operations.
The event’s partners – emergency services, uniformed services, and specialist groups – presented their activities at an outdoor exhibition. Participating organizations included:
Visitors could see specialized equipment used during search and rescue operations, talk with rescuers, and participate in first aid workshops. A dynamic high-altitude rescue demonstration generated considerable interest. During the demonstration, mountain rescuers were transported by helicopter to the roof of Hangar No. 5, where they landed and then evacuated a stretchered casualty via zipline. Rescue dogs also participated in the second part of the demonstration, daringly navigating ropes between the apron in front of the hangar and the roof, along with their handlers.
Historic aircraft associated with medical and rescue aviation also generated considerable interest, including those displayed in the permanent exhibition “With the Wind and Against the Wind – Civil Aviation” in Hangar No. 5. During specially organized guided tours, visitors could see, among other things, a CSS-S-13 medical aircraft, an Aero Ae-145, a Let L-200A Morava, and a Mi-2 police helicopter, which after years of service was added to the Museum’s collection.
The “air hospital” organized inside an An-26 aircraft by the Medical Evacuation Team of the 8th Krakow Airlift Base also generated considerable interest. Visitors could learn about the equipment used during medical transports and the specific work of military medical evacuation teams.
This year’s Night of Museums demonstrated the crucial role aviation plays in the safety and rescue system, and the immense interest generated by the stories of people serving others above the clouds.
The Polish Aviation Museum extends its sincere thanks to all partners, services, institutions, and individuals involved in organizing the event, as well as to all the visitors who so numerously attended this year’s Night of Museums.
