Everything I know about life I learned from model aeroplanes
The Tao of Airfix
Inevitably, some of the things the Airfix Junkers Ju88 teaches us are similar to lessons learned from the Do217E kit. But five years had passed by the time the Ju88 appeared, and the state of the art had moved on. Most of the learning is about reliable sources (or otherwise) and how a story gets subtly modified each time it’s told.
Continue reading “The Airfix Junkers Ju88 – some signs of progress”
As a small boy, I had several copies of the Observer’s Book of Aircraft. But what I really, really wanted was Janes All the World’s Aircraft, aka JAWA. (Not to be confused with the Czech motorcycles of the same name). Can’t recall how I learned about this magical book detailing every current aircraft in the world, but my vague sense of wonder still persists.
Along with memories of going into the charming old fashioned bookshop in Enfield Town. And a numbing sense of shock when a nice man told us the astronomical cost. The original price in 1965 was £8 8s 0d – more than £160 in today’s money. That was a lot of pocket money and was just never going to happen. All very disappointing.
Continue reading “Janes All The World’s Aircraft – a childhood ambition finally achieved”“And you may ask yourself – how did I get here?” Words about a mid-life crisis, apparently, which may also explain how I ended up with so many 1/48 Ju188 kits in 2004. But that’s another story. This is about how I first got into model aeroplanes, some stuff inbetween, and how I got out.
Continue reading “How did I get here? The journey to becoming an ex-modeller”This blog aims is to share the wisdom you could learn about life from the world of model aeroplanes. Plastic model aeroplanes, built from kits. The Tao of Airfix.
You may be wondering what anyone could possibly learn about life from building Airfix kits. Especially if you’re unfamiliar with model aeroplanes and their attendant belief systems.
But even if you already understand that there are profound lessons about life, it may not be so obvious what all of them are.
And just because something is obvious to us, that doesn’t mean it’s obvious to everyone else. Apparently sometimes, other people are more different from ourselves than we like to believe. (A sort of meta-lesson, if you will). And perversely, they don’t always agree with us as much as they should.
Continue reading “What could you possibly learn about life from model aeroplanes?”