Airbus Group will next week open an office and experience center in the heart of Washington DC on Pennsylvania Avenue.

The eighth-floor facility brings together what were previously two separate downtown offices, one for the company’s military and space business, formerly called EADS, and one for its commercial operations. They now operate under the single Airbus Group name, with the North American headquarters in Herndon, Virginia, close to Washington Dulles Airport.

The new combined DC office is also an interactive showcase for the company’s people, products and ideas, located close to congressional, regulatory and Pentagon buildings.

The facility formally opens April 26 with a reception, but media were given a preview earlier this week.

There are many cool show-and-tell features, including interactive displays of products, a flight simulator, aircraft and satellite models and even an A320 Sharklet wingtip.

Especially eye-catching is a feature in the ceiling of the lobby that depicts the tracks of airliners and satellites that occur every day around the globe. The tracks are based on actual flight data.