• Educators
    • What we can offer
    • Secondary Education
    • Primary Education
    • Early Childhood
    • ESOL Groups
    • School Holiday Programme for Groups
    • Plan your group visit
  • Birthday Parties
  • Blog
  • Venue Hire
    • Small Venue Hire
    • Aircraft Hall
    • Thérèse Angelo Wing
  • Store
  • Contact
International Visitor Tickets
Air Force Museum of New Zealand
Air Force Museum of New Zealand
  • Explore
    Hurahia
        • Explore Hurahia

        • What's On
          • Events
          • Ongoing Exhibitions
          • Special Exhibitions
          • Past Exhibitions
          • Talking Taonga
          • Tours & Experiences
          • Memorials
        • Kids & Families
          • Museum Hunts
          • Birthday Parties
          • Kids Activities
          • School Holiday Programmes
        • Collections Online
          • Photographs
          • Aircraft
        • Research
        • Conserve
        • Opening Hours

          Open daily 9.30am to 4.30pm
          (except Christmas Day, 25 December)

          Free entry for New Zealanders & people
          living in New Zealand

          International Visitor Tickets

          Accessible for all

          Location

          45 Harvard Ave, Wigram,
          Christchurch, New Zealand
          Phone: +64 3 371 9600

        • Museum hunts with your whānau

  • Visit
    Peka Mai
        • Visit Peka Mai

        • Know before you go
          • Getting here
          • Accessibility
        • Bring a group
        • Contact Café
        • Museum Store
        • Opening Hours

          Open daily 9.30am to 4.30pm
          (except Christmas Day, 25 December)

          Free entry for New Zealanders & people
          living in New Zealand

          International Visitor Tickets

          Accessible for all

          Location

          45 Harvard Ave, Wigram,
          Christchurch, New Zealand
          Phone: +64 3 371 9600

        • Visit the Aircraft Hall
        • Visit the Aircraft Hall

        • Air Force Museum of New Zealand Shop
        • Visit our Museum Store

  • Support
    He Tautoko
        • Support He Tautoko

        • About Us
        • Make a Donation
        • Donate an Item
        • Become a Volunteer
        • Newsletter
        • Opening Hours

          Open daily 9.30am to 4.30pm
          (except Christmas Day, 25 December)

          Free entry for New Zealanders & people
          living in New Zealand

          International Visitor Tickets

          Accessible for all

          Location

          45 Harvard Ave, Wigram,
          Christchurch, New Zealand
          Phone: +64 3 371 9600

        • Air Force Museum of NZ - Bring a group
        • Join our Team


  • Rapua
        • Search Rapua

  • Educators
  • Venue Hire
  • Museum Store
  • Contact Us
  • INTERNATIONAL VISITOR TICKETS

    Open daily 9.30am to 4.30pm
    (except Christmas Day)

    Location: 45 Harvard Ave, Wigram

    Phone: +64 3 371 9600

Emma Johnson

Military Millinery: Hats in the WAAF and WRNZAF

Military silk and resourceful fashion during World War Two

Comprised of clothing, textiles, personal effects, memorabilia and more, the museum’s non-technical collections help tell personal stories associated with the military. This blog highlights some of the remarkable garments that were made by utilising unrequired World War Two materials. We know a lot about some of them, for others information is limited. The fabric at the heart of all these garments is silk.

Resources became increasingly scarce during the war and with silk favoured as a military material, it was unavailable for dressmaking. The following examples show how military silk was repurposed for civilian clothing. Silk was used early in the war, but as supplies became limited rayon was used; in this blog the term ‘silk’ is used to describe items that could have been made from silk or rayon.

Taking flight: the RNZAF contribution to NAC

75 years ago, on 1 April 1947, the New Zealand National Airways Corporation (NAC) officially launched its operations. The NAC period – with its Dakota DC-3 airliner in particular – is considered by some to be the ‘golden age’ of air travel in New Zealand. This blog highlights how the RNZAF contributed to the emerging national airline.

Donation 101: Donating items to the Air Force Museum Collection

Opening Hours
Open daily 9.30am to 4.30pm
(except Christmas Day, 25 December)

Free entry for New Zealanders & people living in New Zealand

Location
45 Harvard Ave, Wigram,
Christchurch, New Zealand

Phone: 03 371 9600

Air Force Museum of New Zealand

Explore

  • Ongoing Exhibitions
  • Special Exhibitions
  • Tours
  • Kids and Families
  • Our Blogs

Visit

  • Visit the Air Force Museum
  • Accessibility
  • Getting Here
  • About Our Museum

Support

  • Contact Us
  • Make a donation
  • Become a volunteer
Subscribe to our news
  • Instagram
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Kiwi Roundel

© 2025 Air Force Museum. All Rights Reserved.   Privacy  |  Terms

"*" indicates required fields

How did you find out about our birthday parties?