Clouds Can Help (Air Diagram No. 1293-2/40)
A grey painted scene shows German twin-engined aircraft with swastika tail marks attacking a ship while British aircraft withdraw into cloud. The text tells pilots to master instrument flying so they can 'evade them in safety'; the card-stacking tell is that only the successful evasion is shown, with no mention of the risks of cloud flying.
Propaganda techniques used in this poster
- Date
- 1939
- Period
- Second World War
- Made by
- Air Ministry (Air Diagram series), printed for H.M. Stationery Office by Jordison & Co., Ltd.; artist Leslie Carr, drawing by The Aeroplane
- Region
- Western and Central Europe
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Medium
- Poster
- Issuer type
- State
- Regime
- Churchill Government
- Leader
- Winston Churchill
- Audience
- Own forces
- Purpose
- Warn or inform
- Theme
- War and the military
- Event
- World War II
- Leader
- Winston Churchill
- Source
- Identified Openly sourced: the speaker is who they say they are
- Source
- U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 44, World War II Foreign Posters, retrieved October 3, 2026
- Rights
- Public domain (UK Crown copyright, 50 years from publication, expired before 1996; no URAA restoration)
Air Ministry (Air Diagram series), printed for H.M. Stationery Office by Jordison & Co., Ltd.; artist Leslie Carr, drawing by The Aeroplane; U.S. National Archives, WWII Foreign Posters, 44-PF-65c, NAID 44266152.
Text on the object
CLOUDS CAN HELP Make yourself perfect in Instrument Flying and keep in practice. You can then withdraw into cloud when attacked by superior forces and evade them in safety. AIR DIAGRAM No. 1293-2/40 PRINTED FOR H.M. STATIONERY OFFICE BY JORDISON & CO., LTD., LONDON & MIDDLESBROUGH. 51-6266. [signature:] LESLIE CARR [credit:] Drawing by The Aeroplane
