Before the electronic age and mass media, posters were considered an effective means of spreading a public message. Within the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF), posters also became an important training aid to help both new recruits and experienced personnel learn or remember important information.

Until the mid-1960s, much of the equipment and aircraft that the RNZAF operated came from Great Britain, as did the Air Ministry training support material that accompanied it. Although printed in their thousands, each poster was initially hand-drawn, and beautifully represents the art of technical illustration that existed before the digital age.

This exhibition contains some interesting examples from our collection of British instructional posters, as used by the RNZAF in the 1950s and '60s.

On display in the Caldwell Gallery, Level 1.