/flight-archive — thin out the workbench

/flight-archive — thin out the workbench

Move completed or aged files in the workbench into a single timestamped archive bundle. Nothing is deleted — everything stays on disk under flight-workbench/archive/<prefix>-<slug>/ and can be retrieved any time. The <prefix> is the project's configured date-time prefix (env var FLIGHT_FILE_PREFIX, default %Y-%m-%d_%H-%M → YYYY-MM-DD_HH-MM).

This is distinct from /flight-cleanup:

• /flight-cleanup operates on CLAUDE.md's open-task list only.
• /flight-archive operates on workbench files (history, decisions, memos).

Step 1 — Determine scope

If the user passed text as an argument (e.g. /flight-archive everything older than April), use it. Otherwise, present three pre-defined tiers via AskUserQuestion:

• Recent only (Recommended) — archive history and memo files older than 14 days that have not been touched since. Keeps the workbench responsive without losing anything from the past two weeks.
• Mid — archive everything older than 60 days. Suitable for periodic cleanup.
• Deep — archive everything older than 180 days. For workbenches that have accumulated years of context.
• Other — let the user describe in their own words (date range, file types, topic).

For natural-language scope, parse the user's text to determine: date range (older than X / between A and B), file types (history / memos / decisions / all), and any topic filter.

Step 2 — Survey

Walk flight-workbench/history/, flight-workbench/memos/, and flight-workbench/decisions/. For each file, check the mtime and filename date prefix. Build a candidate list of files that match the scope.

Never include in candidates:

• flight-workbench/.flight-setup
• flight-workbench/stilwerk/* — these are reference files, not user content
• Any file modified in the last 24 hours
• Today's active session history file
• The flight-workbench/archive/ folder itself

Step 3 — Propose

Show the user the candidate list grouped by folder, with counts:

Archive proposal

Will move N files into flight-workbench/archive/<prefix>-<slug>/:

From history/ (X files):

• -session.md (modified )
• ...

From memos/ (Y files):

• (modified )
• ...

From decisions/ (Z files):

• (modified )
• ...

Proceed? (yes / review each / cancel)

• yes — move everything in the candidate list.
• review each — walk through each file via AskUserQuestion (Archive / Keep).
• cancel — exit without changes.

If the candidate list is empty:

Nothing to archive. No files match the scope. Try a wider scope (e.g. /flight-archive everything older than April).

Step 4 — Generate the archive slug

Build a short kebab-case slug describing the scope (older-than-14d, mid-tier, closed-decisions, pre-april-2026, etc.). Get the timestamp: date +"${FLIGHT_FILE_PREFIX:-%Y-%m-%d_%H-%M}" (env var FLIGHT_FILE_PREFIX overrides the default). Run it in the shell and use the output verbatim — never a time from your own sense of "now" (your clock is UTC and would be off by the local offset).

Create the archive bundle directory:

TS="$(date +"${FLIGHT_FILE_PREFIX:-%Y-%m-%d_%H-%M}")"
SLUG="<slug>"
mkdir -p "./flight-workbench/archive/${TS}-${SLUG}/history" "./flight-workbench/archive/${TS}-${SLUG}/memos" "./flight-workbench/archive/${TS}-${SLUG}/decisions"

Step 5 — Move the files

For each file in the confirmed list, move it into the matching subfolder of the archive bundle, preserving the filename:

mv "./flight-workbench/history/<file>" "./flight-workbench/archive/${TS}-${SLUG}/history/"

Use mv (not cp) — the file leaves its original folder. The archive is the canonical location after this point.

Step 6 — Write an index

Write ./flight-workbench/archive/<TS>-<SLUG>/README.md:

# Archive — <prefix> — <human-readable scope>

**Created:** <YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM>
**Scope:** <user's scope description or tier label>
**Total files:** N

## history/ (X files)

- <filename> — <one-line summary if derivable from first line>

## memos/ (Y files)

- <filename> — <one-line summary>

## decisions/ (Z files)

- <filename> — <decision title>

## How to retrieve

These are normal files. To use one again, copy or move it back from `flight-workbench/archive/<this-folder>/<subfolder>/<filename>` to its original location in `flight-workbench/`.

Step 7 — Append to session history

Add one line to today's session history file:

- <HH:MM> archive: moved N files to flight-workbench/archive/<TS>-<SLUG>/

Step 8 — Report

Archive complete. Moved N files into flight-workbench/archive/<TS>-<SLUG>/.

Open flight-workbench/archive/<TS>-<SLUG>/README.md for the index. Files can be moved back any time.

What this skill does NOT do

• Does not delete any file. Everything is moved, not removed.
• Does not modify CLAUDE.md.
• Does not archive style profiles (stilwerk/) or the setup marker.