This one jumps out at me:
2026-03-09 - 21:15:54 [6]: [PYTHON JOB]: "pacstrap: error: failed to commit transaction (conflicting files)"
2026-03-09 - 21:15:54 [6]: [PYTHON JOB]: "pacstrap: intel-ucode: /tmp/calamares-root-9m7k8hk5/boot/intel-ucode.img exists in filesystem"
especially since the microcode installer code has been changed recently
The microcode installation logic has been improved - it will now detect the hardware and install the proper microcode instead of installing both and then removing the unneeded one.