{"id":28737179,"date":"2026-10-19T15:36:33","date_gmt":"2026-10-19T13:36:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/salt-lake-city-mig-21-scrapped-leonardo-museum-c-131-2026\/"},"modified":"2026-10-19T15:37:10","modified_gmt":"2026-10-19T13:37:10","slug":"salt-lake-city-mig-21-scrapped-leonardo-museum-c-131-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/de\/salt-lake-city-mig-21-scrapped-leonardo-museum-c-131-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Salt Lake City&#8217;s MiG-21 Will Be Scrapped at The Leonardo"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>.et_pb_title_container h1.entry-title { padding-top: 40px !important; }<\/style>\r\n<!-- mfsh:top -->\r\n\r\n<style>\r\n.mfsh-trigger{display:inline-flex;align-items:center;gap:10px;height:44px;padding:0 18px;margin:0 0 26px;border:2px solid 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Visitors to The Leonardo looked up and saw a former Polish Air Force <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/aircraft\/mig-21-fishbed\/\">MiG-21<\/a>, red-and-white checkerboard on its tail, flying above a gleaming Convair C-131 Samaritan. Now the city says the MiG is coming down, and it is coming down in pieces.<\/p>\r\n<p>Salt Lake City, which owns the building, told The Salt Lake Tribune on Sunday that the jet cannot be removed intact. Both aircraft will be demolished in the coming weeks, and the metal recycled.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<div style=\"background:#f4f6f9;border-left:4px solid #5C91FF;padding:18px 22px;margin:22px 0 26px\"><p style=\"margin:0 0 8px;font-weight:700;color:#0d1117\">Quick Facts<\/p><ul style=\"margin:0;padding-left:18px\"><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Aircraft:<\/strong> Former Polish Air Force Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21, plus a 1954 Convair C-131 Samaritan<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Where:<\/strong> The Leonardo museum building, downtown Salt Lake City<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>On display since:<\/strong> The FLIGHT exhibit opened on 6 August 2016<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Why scrapped:<\/strong> No one could pay to remove it, and removing it whole could threaten the building<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>C-131:<\/strong> Demolition began on 28 September 2026<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>MiG-21:<\/strong> Withdrawn from a second auction after 6 October; to be demolished in the coming weeks<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Afterwards:<\/strong> Metal recycled; the space will become city offices<\/li><\/ul><\/div>\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">A Museum That Closed Around Its Jets<\/h2>\r\n<p>The Leonardo opened its FLIGHT exhibit in August 2016, with the MiG-21 suspended above the C-131 and a theatre fitted with donated airline seats. In June 2025 the museum closed its doors indefinitely amid debts and repair problems with the building, Axios reported, and the city later ended its lease. The aircraft stayed behind.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\" style=\"margin:0 0 24px;width:100%\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" width=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/10\/leonardo-museum-salt-lake-city-exterior.jpg\" alt=\"Exterior of The Leonardo Museum of Creativity and Innovation in Salt Lake City\" style=\"width:100%;height:auto;max-width:100%;display:block\"><figcaption style=\"font-size:13px;color:#777;text-align:center;margin-top:6px;font-style:italic\">The Leonardo building next to the Salt Lake City Public Library, photographed in 2018. The city owns the building and plans to turn the exhibit space into offices. Photo: Ben P L \/ CC BY-SA 2.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\n<p>A first attempt to auction the museum's exhibits in September 2025 was cancelled before it began. This year the city tried again. It held an open house for potential buyers, which nobody attended, and listed the aircraft online. Interest was thin.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<div style=\"background:#f8f9fa;border-left:4px solid #d32f2f;padding:20px 22px;margin:18px 0 24px;font-size:16px;line-height:1.7\"><div><em>&ldquo;[They] were unable to cover the additional removal costs.&rdquo;<\/em><div style=\"margin-top:10px;font-size:14px;color:#555\"><strong>City of Salt Lake City<\/strong> &mdash; statement to The Salt Lake Tribune, on the few potential buyers<\/div><\/div><\/div>\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">Why the MiG Cannot Simply Be Lowered<\/h2>\r\n<p>The problem is in the ceiling. The city says it has little information about how the MiG-21 was installed and suspended, and taking it down in one piece could compromise the building's structural integrity. After further study of the removal process, the project team decided an intact removal was not possible. The jet was pulled from its second auction listing, which had gone up on 6 October.<\/p>\r\n<p>Crews put building safety ahead of the aircraft. The C-131 on the floor below has been coming apart since demolition started on 28 September.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<div style=\"position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;height:0;overflow:hidden;margin:24px 0 8px\"><iframe class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/8RM5cz6kE_k\" style=\"position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;border:0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\r\n\r\n<p style=\"font-size:13px;color:#777;text-align:center;font-style:italic;margin:0 0 24px\">SLCtv footage from the opening of the FLIGHT exhibit at The Leonardo on 6 August 2016.<\/p>\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">The Fighter Built in Greater Numbers Than Any Other<\/h2>\r\n<p>The MiG-21 is the most widely produced supersonic fighter in history, flown by dozens of air forces from Vietnam to Poland. Many survivors sit in museums across Europe and the United States. Losing one is not a catastrophe for the type.<\/p>\r\n<p>It is still a sad end. A jet that once flew with the Polish Air Force spent a decade teaching children in Utah how flight works, and it is about to be cut up because nobody can work out how it was hung. It is a lesson for every museum that hangs a jet from its ceiling: write down how you did it.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p><em>Sources: The Salt Lake Tribune, Axios Salt Lake City, The Utah Review, Hoodline<\/em><\/p>\r\n<!-- mfsh:bottom -->\r\n\r\n<button type=\"button\" class=\"mfsh-trigger mfsh-bottom\" data-mfsh-placement=\"bottom\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><svg><use href=\"#mfsh-i-share\"\/><\/svg>Share this story<\/button>\r\n\r\n<!-- \/mfsh:bottom -->\r\n\r\n\r\n<style>.mfq{margin:34px 0 8px}.mfq h2{font:26px\/1.3 \"Gilroy semiBold\",Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;color:#0d1117;padding-top:22px;margin:0 0 6px}.mfq .qa details{border-top:1px solid #5C91FF;margin:0;padding:0}.mfq .qa details:last-of-type{border-bottom:1px solid #e2e7ee}.mfq .qa summary{cursor:pointer;list-style:none;display:flex;justify-content:space-between;align-items:center;gap:16px;padding:22px 26px;font:18px\/1.7 \"Gilroy semiBold\",Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;color:#0d1117}.mfq .qa summary::-webkit-details-marker{display:none}.mfq .qa summary::after{content:\"+\";font:24px Helvetica,sans-serif;color:#3568e0;flex:0 0 auto}.mfq .qa details[open] summary::after{content:\"\\2013\"}.mfq .qa details:hover summary{color:#3568e0}.mfq .qa .a{font:16px\/1.7 \"Gilroy regular\",Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;color:#454e5e;padding:0 26px 24px}.mfq .qa .a a{color:#3568e0}@media(max-width:680px){.mfq .qa summary{padding:18px 14px;font-size:17px}.mfq .qa .a{padding:0 14px 20px}}<\/style>\r\n\r\n\r\n<section class=\"mfq\"><h2>Frequently Asked Questions<\/h2><div class=\"qa\"><details open><summary>Why is Salt Lake City scrapping the MiG-21 at The Leonardo?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">Salt Lake City says the former Polish Air Force MiG-21 at The Leonardo cannot be removed intact. There is little information on how it was suspended from the ceiling, removing it whole could threaten the building, and the few potential buyers could not cover the removal costs.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>What aircraft were in The Leonardo FLIGHT exhibit?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">The Leonardo FLIGHT exhibit, which opened on 6 August 2016, displayed a former Polish Air Force MiG-21 suspended above a 1954 Convair C-131 Samaritan military transport. The exhibit also had flight simulators and a theatre fitted with donated airline seats.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>When will the MiG-21 at The Leonardo be demolished?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">Salt Lake City said on 18 October 2026 that both aircraft would be demolished in the coming weeks. Demolition of the C-131 Samaritan began on 28 September 2026, and the MiG-21 was withdrawn from auction after a reassessment of the removal process.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>Is The Leonardo museum in Salt Lake City closed?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">Yes. The Leonardo museum closed indefinitely in June 2025 amid debts and repair problems, and Salt Lake City, which owns the building, later ended its lease. The city plans to use the former exhibit space for administrative offices.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>How many MiG-21s were built?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">The MiG-21 is the most widely produced supersonic fighter jet in history, with more than 11,000 built. It served with dozens of air forces, including Poland's, which is where the jet at The Leonardo in Salt Lake City came from.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>Can I fly in a Soviet-built jet fighter?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">MiGFlug no longer offers MiG-21 flights, but you can fly in a Soviet-designed jet: the <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/mig-15\/\">MiG-15 near Prague<\/a> in Czechia, listed from 3,250 euros. The MiG-15 is an earlier Mikoyan-Gurevich jet fighter, famous from the Korean War.<\/div><\/details><\/div><\/section>\r\n\r\n\r\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@type\":\"FAQPage\",\"mainEntity\":[{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"Why is Salt Lake City scrapping the MiG-21 at The Leonardo?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"Salt Lake City says the former Polish Air Force MiG-21 at The Leonardo cannot be removed intact. 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The MiG-15 is an earlier Mikoyan-Gurevich jet fighter, famous from the Korean War.\"}}]}<\/script><div style=\"background:#f0f4ff;border-left:4px solid #5C91FF;padding:16px 20px;margin:32px 0 8px\"><p style=\"margin:0 0 8px;font-weight:600;color:#333\">Related Posts<\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/mig-21-nose-cone-inlet-shock-cone-explained\/\">MiG-21 Nose Cone Explained: How the Shock Cone Feeds a Mach 2 Jet<\/a><\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/eaa-aviation-museum-oshkosh-six-new-aircraft-seattle-ii-pby-catalina-2026\/\">EAA Aviation Museum Adds Six Aircraft, From Seattle II to a PBY<\/a><\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/av-8b-harrier-last-usmc-airframe-pensacola-museum-2026\/\">AV-8B Harrier: The Last One Built for the Marines Goes to a Museum<\/a><\/p><\/div>\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Share this story For ten years, a Cold War fighter hung in the air over downtown Salt Lake City. Visitors to The Leonardo looked up and saw a former Polish Air Force MiG-21, red-and-white checkerboard on its tail, flying above a gleaming Convair C-131 Samaritan. Now the city says the MiG is coming down, and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":28737132,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"editor_notices":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[664,670],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28737179","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-military-aviation","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Leonardo MiG-21 to Be Scrapped in Salt Lake City | MiGFlug<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Leonardo MiG-21 that hung over Salt Lake City for ten years cannot be removed intact. 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