Flypast had hit the point where its audience were as specialist as the writers, and to actually learn any more of interest to them the readership were spending their time in AP’s, Hendon, TNA etc, not buying a magazine from Smiths.

I am guessing that the only way forward for Key in terms of sales was to go the other way and go for the ‘Wow, look, Spitfires!’ angle. They had the other audience covered with the new direction of Aeroplane, and I have also migrated across.

Does leave the question of why FP couldn’t have adopted the Aeroplane formiula.. it probably had to do with a strategy to maintain both titles.

The way that parts of the British media still work, it depends a lot on which toilets.

Yes, I meant neolibs. People who support the European Union can’t be Socialists by definition, they’re opposing positions.

You won’t know this, I am guessing. You’ll recognise the tune, though:

So comrades come rally
For this is the time and place
The international ideal
Unites the human race

Let no one build walls to divide us
Walls of hatred nor walls of stone
Come greet the dawn and stand beside us
We’ll live together or we’ll die alone

…and no, that does not contradict the idea of it being ‘punk’. Punk was anti-establishment in word, but never in deed. You can be sure John Lydon (wannabe anarchist) had a bank account.

Agree with the second part, CD. And then there’s the probability that there are items that mysteriously escaped the flames, now with an idea of their value subconsciously attached, along with the backstory of this ‘gesture’. This was a marketing excercise, plain and simple.

..to add, if you are researching a particular pilot you shouldn’t just restrict yourself to his logbook if looking to establish a code letter. The ORB will show who else flew that aircraft, and they may have recorded the letter even if your man didn’t.

It really would help if you could explain what you are researching. Giving a specialist forum a serial will not cause any problems, unless you are up to no good. I can’t imagine how, mind.

There was no standard official document that ever existed to link the serial – which came ‘out of the factory’ as it were – with the code, which was applied in the field. The code depended in theory on the flight and even the section the aircraft’s pilot was expected to fly in but this quickly fell apart as a system when turnover of pilots and aircraft began to accelerate.

Pilot’s log books sometimes, but not always, gave both letters and numbers for each specific sortie. Apart from that it’s photo references, I’m afraid.

To be frank, if you can stop being coy about the serial you are much more likely to get someone on here with the photo or logbook reference needed to give the code.

Punk – or most UK punk – was bratty and attention seeking. It was ‘We don’t care! Look at us not caring!’. It was destructive and often ostentatiously nihilistic. So all this chap is doing is being punk. He is also publicising the whole thing to a new generation, who will learn more about what punk meant (or noisily didn’t mean) from this daft act than any number of torn T-shirts in glass cases.

The iconography of punk remains, the objects are probably of little value other than to collectors.

..and let’s not forget who ultimately benefits from any increased sales of Pistols music caused by this publicity.. I doubt it will do the estate of Malcolm McLaren any harm.