Open Air Museum of Military Equipment, Kyiv

At the foot of the colossal Motherland Monument (Rodyna Mat) spreads a vast courtyard where tanks, artillery pieces, helicopters and jets stand under the open sky. There’s no glass between you and the hardware — walk right up and feel the true scale of these machines.

Location Card

What It Is and Why People Come

This open-air exhibition of military hardware is part of a large museum complex beside the Motherland Monument in Kyiv. Spread across open grounds are tanks, artillery, armoured vehicles and aviation exhibits — a transport aircraft, helicopters and a jet fighter.

People come for two reasons: the sheer up-close scale of the machines, and the breathtaking panorama of the Dnipro River from the Pechersk hillside.

History

The exhibition took shape as part of the memorial museum complex on the Pechersk slopes, centred on the Motherland Monument — one of the tallest statues in the world. Combat vehicles and weapons from various periods were assembled here in the open air.

Separate buildings within the complex are dedicated to the war in Afghanistan and other armed conflicts abroad; aviation exhibits include a transport aircraft, helicopters and a jet fighter. In recent years the museum has been rethinking its narrative in the context of the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War.

Among the rarities is a Sherman medium tank recovered from a river — a Lend-Lease machine that spent decades on the riverbed before being raised and put back on display.

Stories Behind the Exhibits

1. The Tank That Rose from the River

The Sherman recovered from the riverbed is a vivid illustration of how machines outlast their crews. Decades underwater, then back on a plinth. Exhibits like this inevitably collect questions: exactly how did it end up there?

2. Hardware That Shifts Meaning

Many of these vehicles were built as symbols of one era, but their meaning has changed. Today a visitor views Soviet-era hardware through the lens of a new war — which makes the exhibition far sharper than its designers intended.

What to See on Site

Tanks and armoured vehicles. The heart of the exhibition: machines you can walk around and examine in detail.

Aviation. A transport aircraft, an Mi-24 helicopter (one of the Soviet Union’s most iconic gunships) and a jet fighter — striking large-format exhibits.

The Motherland Monument and the views. The monument itself and the panorama of the Dnipro make the walk spectacular regardless of your interest in military hardware.

How to Get There

Landmark. The Motherland Monument on the Pechersk hills is visible from afar — you can’t miss it.

Transport. Easiest to reach from metro stations in the Pechersk district, then on foot down the slopes; the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra (the famous monastery complex) is right next door.

Tip. Check opening hours and access in advance — the museum complex schedule is subject to change.

Traveller’s Checklist

• Bring: comfortable shoes — the grounds are large and hilly.
• Bring: a camera and water.
• Check: complex opening hours and any air-raid alerts in the city.
• Don’t: climb on the exhibits where it is not permitted.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where exactly is the open-air military exhibition in Kyiv?

Beside the Motherland Monument, as part of the large museum complex on the Pechersk hillside above the Dnipro River.

Can you get close to the vehicles?

Yes, the open-air format lets you examine the hardware up close. Climbing on exhibits is allowed only where clearly indicated.

Is this suitable for children?

Absolutely. Large open-air military hardware is a perennial hit with kids. The broader museum complex offers plenty more to explore for a longer outing.

The open-air military exhibition beneath the Motherland Monument is a place where history weighs in at a literal tonne of steel. It’s hard to grasp the physical bulk of war until you’ve walked around it.

And above it all — the Dnipro and the city that all that steel was ultimately meant to protect.