TICKETS! AvCultures Mk VIII & CAHS Convention ticket offices are OPEN. First details of the programme, events, highlights are listed. Join us at the KF Centre For Excellence, pictured! Online access tickets are Can$50, in person Can$350 ($325 for CAHS members). aviationcultures.org/aviation-cul...

Back in February I presented a paper about Clive Caldwell at the @avculturesconf.bsky.social Print the Legend ‘searchlight’ event. I discussed his photo albums & how Caldwell used them to narrate his service. I've posted the script on my blog. kristenalexanderauthor.blogspot.com/2026/04/fram...

James here! I'm v much looking forward to getting back to Kelowna for Aviation Cultures Mk VIII, with our partners the Canadian Aviation Historical Society at the KF Centre of Excellence with their great aircraft collection and display, inc their CF-104. Oh, and some Canadian lake time! kfcentre.ca

Breaking news: conspiracy theorist about to discover the Sun!!

The programme for the Aviation Cultures Conference, Mk VIII is NEARLY ready to share. It'll be at the KF Centre For Excellence, Canada, AND online, in partnership with the Canadian Aviation Historical Society (CAHS) on 17-20 June 2026. Stay tuned for more aviationcultures.org Your Easter treat! -JDK

First poll about Aus attitudes to Iran war I have seen, but second Q wording is debatable. Some respondents would agree the Gulf states are indirectly "in conflict with Iran", others would say they are being unilaterally attacked by it.

Time for Australia to (finally) distance ourselves from these war criminals

At least somebody’s got some guts

If anyone is friends with any Georgian air traffic controllers, buy them a nice bottle of wine. As guardians of pretty much the only narrow gap still available between Europe and Asia that avoids both Iran, the Gulf, Ukraine and Russia, they are under some substantial pressure.

What's the connection between Helen Doe's bio of fighter ace Stanford Tuck, & 1980s novel & TV series 'Piece of Cake' by Derek Robinson? Find out from Helen, myself and James Jefferies at @avculturesconf.bsky.social's Searchlight FREE online webinar this weekend! aviationcultures.org/spotlights/p...

We’ve got some interesting tales to tell, factual and fictional - don’t miss any of it, including ‘the Jameses Show’ in the third session! -JDK

Registered for the Aviation Cultures Print the Legend 27-28 Feb yet? aviationcultures.org/spotlights/p... I'm talking about Clive Caldwell and there are lots of other fantastic papers. It's online (via Zoom) and free. My paper is second on the 27 Feb session: 10.00 am Sydney / 9.00 am Brisbane.

This shit is absolutely revolting. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

A Queensland pilot has made aviation history in Central Australia, flying more than 1,200 kilometres without an engine in a record-breaking glider flight launched from Alice Springs.

Thoughts on #FridayReads. A paired ‘then & now’ bio set on well-known, highly regarded British pilots: Bob Stanford Tuck & Eric Brown. In both cases, modern bios explode multiple myths. Join us, & author Dr Helen Doe at @avculturesconf.bsky.social to discuss! aviationcultures.org/spotlights/p...

WTF?

Don't forget to register for Print the Legend!

ICYMI

Presumably the location of a CWGC cemetery was proving inconvenient to the demands and requirements of an ongoing genocide. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/f...

Vintage aviation: the HARS Super Constellation is enjoying a flight along the coast near Sydney today. www.flightradar24.com/EAG/3e2b51c0

Last chance! Extended call for papers for AvCultures Conference Mk. VIII closes on 5th Feb, central Canada time, so get your paper in - we hope to see you in Kelowna, BC Canada in June! (Not forgetting the forthcoming free, online Searchlight event 27-28 Feb.) aviationcultures.org/aviation-cul...

Yesterday James Robert David Jefferies and I had a fantastic chat about our paper for @avculturesconf.bsky.social 'Print the Legend' free webinar 'Searchlight'. Despite being on opposite sides of the globe, we were on the same page! See more, join us! Details: aviationcultures.org/spotlights/p...

Downfall Bovino Edition. You're welcome.

Anybody know what this avionics module is or what it’s from? Found in the mountains in France: Amplifier type A608/C made in England by Ultra Electric Ltd.

For our next presenter profile the Aviation Cultures team are thrilled to welcome Ian Castle to Print the Legend. His presentation is titled "Will the real Von Buttlar please stand up?" Register here: unisq.zoom.us/webinar/regi... #Aviation #Zepplins #AviationCulture

Bessie Coleman 1st African-American woman to hold pilot license, earned 1921 @ Fédération Aéronautique Internationale in France as US wouldn't train Black women. Became high-profile pilot in dangerous air shows in US, nicknamed Queen Bess. b. #OTD 26 Jan 1892 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bessie_...

The Call for Papers for the full AvCultures Mk VIII conference has been extended to 5 Feb! So you can still submit your paper and join us in person in Kelowna Canada at the Centre for Excellence, or online, in June. -JDK The entry form is here: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

Don't miss it! It's free to attend our Print the Legend Spotlight event on 27-28 Feb online, and we have the full conference, in person in Kelowna, BC Canada and also online, so do join us! We are still accepting papers for the AvCultures Conference in June, for details, see below!

Apparently people are surprised that a man whose only friends on the world stage are a KGB agent & a North Korean Stalinist planned to unleash a murderous secret police on his population. Looking back, there were signs.

The first MC-55A Peregrine landed at RAAF Edinburgh this week - and isn’t it gorgeous?! Having been involved with this capability since the requirements stage, it’s so good to finally see it in Australia and in 10 Squadron’s hands! 📸 Nathan Rundle

Sign up for this folks! Everything Aviation Cultures does is wizard, it's global, and it's free! @jamesjhistory.bsky.social @jdkightly.bsky.social @kristenauthor.bsky.social

Another of the presenters in Print the Legend (aviationcultures.org/spotlights/p...) will be Dr Amanda Laugesen, presenting “Flying War Stories: Australian Aviation War Memoirs, Publishing, and the Evolution of the Genre”. >

At Airminded: Print the Legend: the Red Baron and friends

In the first presenter profile for Print the Legend, (27-28 February - register here: unisq.zoom.us/webinar/regi... ) we are thrilled to welcome backour old friend Guillaume de Syon. Guillaume’s presentation is titled “Hot Air Stories? Figuring out the “real” Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin”. >

The Qantas Founders Museum in Longreach is looking for a Senior Curator. Anyone interested is encouraged to contact the CEO directly at [email protected] for further information or an informal discussion.

After 9/11, 43 Danish soldiers died fighting in Afghanistan. Trump's attempt to steal Greenland, his threats of war against Denmark, his temper tantrum over the Nobel Prize, it's all too disgusting for words. Congress must reign in this mad king—before it's too late. www.reuters.com/world/europe...

Session plan is here: 3>

DO YOU HAVE ANY TROPHIES OR AWARDS I CAN HAVE?

For #FridayReads, May I suggest The Vintage Aviation Echo’s ( @vintageavecho.bsky.social ) new Vol II? As well as a range of other splendid articles, it has my feature on the Martin Mars saga, that goes in many unexpected directions, inc from Mary Pickford to Typhoon Freda. Details: www.vaemag.com

@airminded.org FYI the SLNSW is aviation posting, and I think this early pilot attained flight through the lift provided by her jacket lapels flic.kr/p/2rRnqau

Review by @philthyavnurd.bsky.social of Ian Campbell, Relentless Skies: The Most Efficient Airman, vol 1 of a new biography of Don Bennett

"Hangar Y" is the world's first airship hangar and one of the oldest buildings dedicated to aeronautics. Built in 1878, it served as a storage facility for the Air Museum from 1921 to 1973, before the museum moved to Le Bourget. It was completely restored in 2023.

A good view of the Antarctic coast for #LA805 to Melbourne today. Today’s flight traveling south of -70° latitude. www.flightradar24.com/LAN805/3d645...

Massive shoutout out to whoever handles the Royal Canadian Air Force’s social media account. They responded to every single comment on their already very solid Trans Day of Remembrance post and they responded like this…

Insane but true fact: making US roads as safe as Canadian, Australian, or European roads would save more lives than eliminating murder from the US.

Prime position right under my favourite aircraft The French Lady 😍

It’s Amelia Earhart finding season again! Thanks to The Conversation for giving me the opportunity to explore the “Amelia cycle” and share my thoughts in this piece. theconversation.com/amelia-earha...