Of Air and Men

On November 8, 1935, the greatest aircraft of its time vanished into the night – and with it, two men, a legend, and the truth. Charles Kingsford Smith, one of the most celebrated international figures of his age, and his young protégé and co-pilot Tommy Pethybridge, were never seen again. What remained was silence, heartbreak, and a mystery that would ripple across generations.

Decades later, whilst on expedition in the remote waters off Myanmar, an intrepid explorer uncovers the wreck of the Lady Southern Cross. That discovery ignites a twenty-year journey to piece together what really happened, to strip away the myths that clouded Charles’s memory, and to bring long-awaited closure to the families who endured in their absence.

OF AIR AND MEN is a true story, epically told through the intimacy of historical fiction – where ambition and hardship, courage and vulnerability, love and loss intertwine. It is also the story of the women who bore the weight of that silence – and of a son, just shy of his third birthday when his father vanished and who, for ninety years, knew him only through the history books.

Until now . . .

Set against the glamour and turbulence of the 1930s, and echoing into the lives still marked by that night, this is both a mystery unraveled and a legacy reclaimed.

A haunting, human story – of those who flew, those who waited, and those who, against all odds, refused to let the truth be lost to time.

Author Biography

Damien Lay is an acclaimed director, producer, and screen-writer with more than three decades in the film industry. A multi-award-winning filmmaker, he has built a reputation for uncovering untold stories and bringing them to life with cinematic intensity and emotional depth. His landmark documentary The Battle of Long Tan (2006) remains the highest-rated program in Australian pay television history.Guided by a passion for history, mystery, and the enduring power of story, Lay has created a diverse body of work that spans feature films, documentaries, and original screenplays. His credits include Game of Aces (2016), Semi Colin (2012), and He’s Coming South (2005), each marked by a relentless pursuit of truth and a commitment to artistry. His work has taken him to the farthest corners of the world in search of forgotten histories and hidden narratives, shaping stories that are both compelling and emotionally resonant.Whether on screen or page, Lay’s storytelling is defined by a devotion to craft, exploration of humanity’s mysteries, and an indomitable spirit that drives him to seek, to question, and to remember.