The Aviation Show

The RAF Museum sites at Hendon in London and RAF Cosford in the Midlands are home to a collection that tells the century-old story of the RAF. It is where my obsession with the Hawker Typhoon began and where I returned a couple of weeks ago to chat with the museum's CEO, Maggie Appleton. The RAF Museum has a broad story, so how does the museum manage the expectations of a wide variety of visitors of an ever-changing demographic? I sat down over a cup of tea and biscuits to discuss the museum's role, its present post-COVID and its future in the guise of its plans outlined in Strategy 2030. Yes, the Typhoon gets a mention or two.★You can learn more about the RAF Museum, its collection and what events they have coming up through their website: https://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/★Follow the RAF Museum on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/RAFMJoint★Follow the RAF Museum on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/rafmuseum/★Follow the RAF Museum on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/RAFMUSEUM★Catch the latest videos from the RAF Museum on their YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/user/RAFMuseum★You can hear my visit to the RAF Museum's Michael Beetham Conservation Centre, discussing Bomber Command's early days in the Second World War, from History Hack Hedge Hopping days here: https://www.thedamcasterspod.com/hedge-hopping/#raf-museumPlease check out the latest from our sponsor, the Pima Air and Space Museum, through the links below:★Visit the Pima Air and Space Museum’s website here: https://pimaair.org/★Learn more about the Titan Missle Museum here: https://titanmissilemuseum.org/★Find out who is in the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame here: https://pimaair.org/about-us/arizona-aviation-hall-of-fame/★Want to know how the Tucson Military Vehicle Museum is progressing? Find out more here: https://www.tucsonmilitaryvehicle.org/★Fancy becoming a Damcasteer? Join the fun on Patreon! Join from just £3+VAT a month to get ad-free episodes, chat with Matt and grab some merch. Click here below for more info: https://www.patreon.com/thedamcastersThe Damcasters © 2022 by Matt Bone is licensed under Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Every Thursday, Col. Richard Bushong heads over to the 390th Memorial Museum and holds court under the nose of the museum's B-17 Flying Fortress and answers questions for all the visitors who approach him. Dick is well placed to answer them as he flew 28 missions with the 8th Air Force's 390th Bomb Group in late 1943 and early 1944. At 100 years young, Dick is a fantastic chap to chat to and offers an insight into the realities of the 8th's battle over Occupied Europe.★Buy Dick's book, My Wars, at the 390th Memorial Museum Shop here: https://390thstore.org/collections/books-dvds/products/my-wars★Buy Dick's book, My Wars, at the Damcasters Bookshop. 10% of each purchase supports the pod, here (UK and EU only) here: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/11015/9780615198323★Buy Dick's book, My Wars, at Amazon here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/My-Wars-Richard-Bushong/dp/0615198325/★Visit the 390th Memorial Museum's website at: https://www.390th.org/★Follow the 390th Memorial Museum on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/390thMMF/★Follow the 390th Memorial Museum on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/390thmmf/Please check out the latest from our sponsor, the Pima Air and Space Museum, through the links below:★Visit the Pima Air and Space Museum’s website here: https://pimaair.org/★Learn more about the Titan Missle Museum here: https://titanmissilemuseum.org/★Find out who is in the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame here: https://pimaair.org/about-us/arizona-aviation-hall-of-fame/★Want to know how the Tucson Military Vehicle Museum is progressing? Find out more here: https://www.tucsonmilitaryvehicle.org/★Fancy becoming a Damcasteer? Join the fun on Patreon! Join from just £3+VAT a month to get ad-free episodes, chat with Matt and grab some merch. Click here below for more info: https://www.patreon.com/thedamcastersThe Damcasters © 2022 by Matt Bone is licensed under Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The 390th Memorial Museum is a museum within the Pima Air and Space Museum dedicated to the memory of the men of the 390th Bomb Group of the 8th Air Force who were based at Framlingham in Suffolk. Bill Buckingham is the museum's Executive Director. Bill kindly sat down with me during my visit to Pima to discuss the museum, the 390th and what the memorial means to him as the director and to the visitors who pass through this superb museum.★Visit the 390th Memorial Museum's website at: https://www.390th.org/★Follow the 390th Memorial Museum on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/390thMMF/★Follow the 390th Memorial Museum on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/390thmmf/Please check out the latest from our sponsor, the Pima Air and Space Museum, through the links below:★Visit the Pima Air and Space Museum’s website here: https://pimaair.org/★Learn more about the Titan Missle Museum here: https://titanmissilemuseum.org/★Find out who is in the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame here: https://pimaair.org/about-us/arizona-aviation-hall-of-fame/★Want to know how the Tucson Military Vehicle Museum is progressing? Find out more here: https://www.tucsonmilitaryvehicle.org/★Fancy becoming a Damcasteer? Join the fun on Patreon! Join from just £3+VAT a month to get ad-free episodes, chat with Matt and grab some merch. Click here below for more info: https://www.patreon.com/thedamcastersThe Damcasters © 2022 by Matt Bone is licensed under Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbour, their forces raced south towards Australia. The evacuation towards Australia would prove costly for the Empire Class flying boats of Qantas. In part 3 of our look at the Empire flying boats, Phil Vabre tells us about the attacks on Darwin and Broome and his research into uncovering the fate of Circe.You can catch part 1 here: https://shows.acast.com/the-damcasters/episodes/647e11bc73919c0011b58b36You can catch part 2 here: https://shows.acast.com/the-damcasters/episodes/empire-flying-boats-at-war-part-2-with-phil-vabre★You can learn more about the Civil Aviation Historical Society and the Airways Museum at Essendon at their website here: https://www.airwaysmuseum.com/★You can check out Phil's flying boat articles in The Aviation Historian, issues TAH9, TAH17, TAH31 and TAH32 via their website where you can get the back issues and subscribe here: https://www.theaviationhistorian.com/Please check out the latest from our sponsor, the Pima Air and Space Museum, through the links below:★Visit the Pima Air and Space Museum’s website here: https://pimaair.org/★Learn more about the Titan Missle Museum here: https://titanmissilemuseum.org/★Find out who is in the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame here: https://pimaair.org/about-us/arizona-aviation-hall-of-fame/★Want to know how the Tucson Military Vehicle Museum is progressing? Find out more here: https://www.tucsonmilitaryvehicle.org/★Fancy becoming a Damcasteer? Join the fun on Patreon! Join from just £3+VAT a month to get ad-free episodes, chat with Matt and grab some merch. Click here below for more info: https://www.patreon.com/thedamcastersThe Damcasters © 2022 by Matt Bone is licensed under Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Continuing the story of the Empire Class flying boat, Phil Vabre returns to tell us about how Qantas were able to continue operating services in the Far East as the war in Europe started to get closer to home.You can catch part 1 here: https://shows.acast.com/the-damcasters/episodes/647e11bc73919c0011b58b36★You can learn more about the Civil Aviation Historical Society and the Airways Museum at Essendon at their website here: https://www.airwaysmuseum.com/★You can check out Phil's flying boat articles in The Aviation Historian, issues TAH9, TAH17, TAH31 and TAH32 via their website where you can get the back issues and subscribe here: https://www.theaviationhistorian.com/Please check out the latest from our sponsor, the Pima Air and Space Museum, through the links below:★Visit the Pima Air and Space Museum’s website here: https://pimaair.org/★Learn more about the Titan Missle Museum here: https://titanmissilemuseum.org/★Find out who is in the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame here: https://pimaair.org/about-us/arizona-aviation-hall-of-fame/★Want to know how the Tucson Military Vehicle Museum is progressing? Find out more here: https://www.tucsonmilitaryvehicle.org/★Fancy becoming a Damcasteer? Join the fun on Patreon! Join from just £3+VAT a month to get ad-free episodes, chat with Matt and grab some merch. Click here below for more info: https://www.patreon.com/thedamcastersThe Damcasters © 2022 by Matt Bone is licensed under Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Maj Gen Russ Violett (Rtd) had a 30-year career with the USAF, flying multiple types, including the North American F-100 Super Sabre (in which he had a 2-minute flight before punching out!) and the fantastic Republic F-105 Thunderchief, the Thud. The Thud always brought Russ home in 126 missions over Laos and Vietnam. Our discussion covers the tactics of attacking missile sites, the drawback of major operations half a world away and much more.★You can learn more about The Friday Pilots, of whom Russ is a member, who meet for lunch each Friday and put the world to rights here: https://fridaypilots.com/★ The collection of their tales is The Friday Pilots book is available here: https://fridaypilots.com/the-book/Please check out the latest from our sponsor, the Pima Air and Space Museum, through the links below:★Visit the Pima Air and Space Museum’s website here: https://pimaair.org/★Learn more about the Titan Missle Museum here: https://titanmissilemuseum.org/★Find out who is in the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame here: https://pimaair.org/about-us/arizona-aviation-hall-of-fame/★Want to know how the Tucson Military Vehicle Museum is progressing? Find out more here: https://www.tucsonmilitaryvehicle.org/Cover Image: DoD 342-C-KE-36175The Damcasters © 2022 by Matt Bone is licensed under Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On the 29th April 2023, the Classic British Jets Collection re-opened their doors at their Buntingthrope base for the first time this side of the pandemic. Dave Thomas and the team kindly invited me up to chat with the team and see jet fuel turned into sweet, sweet noise.The aircraft that you will hear, in the order they pop up in the podcast, are:★English Electric Canberra B(I)-8 WT333★De Havilland Venom FB.50 WR470★Hawker Hunter GA.11 WT806★Gloster Meteor NF.11 WM167The day was great fun and I hope this quick visit is an easier listen than last week!★You can follow the Classic British Jet Collection on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/classicbritishjetscollection/★You can follow the Classic British Jet Collection on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/ClassicBritishJets/Please check out the latest from our sponsor, the Pima Air and Space Museum, through the links below:★Visit the Pima Air and Space Museum’s website here: https://pimaair.org/★Learn more about the Titan Missle Museum here: https://titanmissilemuseum.org/★Find out who is in the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame here: https://pimaair.org/about-us/arizona-aviation-hall-of-fame/★Want to know how the Tucson Military Vehicle Museum is progressing? Find out more here: https://www.tucsonmilitaryvehicle.org/All Images: Matt Bone★Fancy becoming a Damcasteer? Join the fun on Patreon! Join from just £3+VAT a month to get ad-free episodes, chat with Matt and grab some merch. Click here below for more info: https://www.patreon.com/thedamcastersThe Damcasters © 2022 by Matt Bone is licensed under Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On the night of the 13/14th of July 1943, RAF Bomber Command returned to the German city of Aachen again. This time they were carrying what they termed an "arson load". The attack created a firestorm that would take over a day to burn out and kill hundreds. Eleven days later, Operation Gomorrah, the firebombing of Hamburg, was carried out. Historian Dr Philip Blood joins me to discuss the July raid and the many other attacks on Aachen. In this extended episode, we look at Bomber Command's procedures and the intent used to promulgate the bombing offensive and the point at which their purpose became genocidal. WARNING - this episode contains a discussion of death, autopsies and genocide. ★Follow Phil on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/HistorianBlood★Phil's Academea.edu page with his thesis, papers and reviews can be found here: https://philipwblood.academia.edu/ ★Buy Birds of Prey - Hitler's Luftwaffe, Ordinary Soldiers, and the Holocaust in Poland by Philip[ Blood at The Damcasters Bookshop, 10% of each purchase supports the pod, here (UK and EU only): https://uk.bookshop.org/a/11015/9783838215679★Listen to our Birds of Prey podcast via History Hack here:Pt.1 - https://historyhack.podbean.com/e/hedge-hopping-with-matt-bone-birds-of-prey-with-dr-philip-blood-pt-1-the-hunt/Pt.2 - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/hedge-hopping-with-matt-bone-birds-of-prey-with/id1506031126?i=1000537603683 Please check out the latest from our sponsor, the Pima Air and Space Museum, through the links below:★Visit the Pima Air and Space Museum’s website here: https://pimaair.org/★Learn more about the Titan Missle Museum here: https://titanmissilemuseum.org/★Find out who is in the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame here: https://pimaair.org/about-us/arizona-aviation-hall-of-fame/★Want to know how the Tucson Military Vehicle Museum is progressing? Find out more here: https://www.tucsonmilitaryvehicle.org/Image: © IWM C 3608The Damcasters © 2022 by Matt Bone is licensed under Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mike Cusick was a Crew Chief on UH-1 Hueys and UH-60 Blackhawks in a career spanning five decades. Mike has seen everything from operating in the Vietnam delta to Afghanistan and Iraq, including flying into an Afghan canyon to rescue Marcus Letrell after Operation Red Wings went south. The episode was recorded onsite at the fab Pima Air and Space Museum and my chat with Mike covers a whole lot of ground. I hope you enjoy it.★Get the full lowdown on the Pima UH-1M Huey Gunship here: https://pimaair.org/museum-aircraft/bell-uh-1m/ Please check out the latest from our sponsor, the Pima Air and Space Museum, through the links below:★Visit the Pima Air and Space Museum’s website here: https://pimaair.org/★Learn more about the Titan Missle Museum here: https://titanmissilemuseum.org/★Find out who is in the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame here: https://pimaair.org/about-us/arizona-aviation-hall-of-fame/★Want to know how the Tucson Military Vehicle Museum is progressing? Find out more here: https://www.tucsonmilitaryvehicle.org/★Check out So There I Was Was with Fig and Repete here: https://sothereiwas.us/The Damcasters © 2022 by Matt Bone is licensed under Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Len Deighton’s Bomber, both the original novel and the 1995 Radio 4 adaptation, have had a huge impact on both readers and listeners of the last flight of O Orange for decades. But how has this impact affected the view of Bomber Command and did Len get it right? Dr Dan Ellin the archivist and historian for the International Bomber Command Center Digital Archive and James Jefferies, PhD Candidate and Assistant Lecturer at the University of Essex, join me to discuss Bomber’s place in Bomber Command’s histography. ★Read Dan’s paper on LMF, A ‘Lack of Moral Fibre’ in Royal Air Force Bomber Command and ★Popular Culture, here: https://bjmh.gold.ac.uk/article/view/1425/1538★Follow Dan on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/danmadmorgan★Follow James on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/jamesjhistory★Check out James LinkTree which includes many of his talks, here: https://linktr.ee/jamesjhistory★Buy Bomber by Len Deighton from The Damcasters Bookshop. 10% of each purchase supports the pod: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/11015/9780241493700Please check out the latest from our sponsor, the Pima Air and Space Museum, through the links below: ★Visit the Pima Air and Space Museum’s website here: https://pimaair.org/★Learn more about the Titan Missle Museum here: https://titanmissilemuseum.org/★Find out who is in the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame here: https://pimaair.org/about-us/arizona-aviation-hall-of-fame/★Want to know how the Tucson Military Vehicle Museum is progressing? Find out more here: https://www.tucsonmilitaryvehicle.org/★Fancy becoming a Damcasteer? Join the fun on Patreon! Join from just £3+VAT a month to get ad-free episodes, chat with Matt and grab some merch. Click here below for more info: https://www.patreon.com/thedamcastersThe Damcasters © 2022 by Matt Bone is licensed under Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.