The aircraft was built in 1957 by Cliff Brown. It is an EPB 1, a 26 foot tailless sailplane designed in United States by Al Backstrom, Phil Easley and Jack Powell in 1954 as a simple, cheap, compact craft.A small number of single seat gliders of this type were built in Australia in the 1950s. As far as is presently known, the only surviving substantially complete EPB 1s are Cliff Brown’s glider and another held by the RAAF Association at Bull Creek in Western Australia. Unfortunately, no trace exists of the Flying Plank built by Glidair Sailplanes in Sydney and test flown by Fred Hoinville at Moorabbin in 1957. In addition, a larger two seat derivative (known as the Twin Plank) designed and built by Glidair Sailplanes (completed 1958) is held at the Power House Museum, Castlehill, in Sydney. Single seat tailless glider with wing tip rudders. The glider is of wood / fabric construction and has been restored for static display by recovering with new fabric and painting. Noneaustralian gliding, glider, flying wing, flying plank, home-built, cliff brown, al backstrom, fred hoinville, glidair sailplanes

The ES52 Kookaburra is a two seat high wing glider – sailplane of wooden construction designed by Harry Schneider and built Edmund Schneider Pty Ltd. It was first flown on 26 June 1954 and became the glider of choice for training new pilots of many gliding clubs around Australia in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. Several found there way to New Zealand. Further two kits were sent to Brazil and at least one of these was finished and flow successfully. The ES52 performed well with a glide ratio of about 22:1 and had soaring and cross-country capabilities. A notable feature of the ES52 design was the staggered side-by-side seating arrangement of the cockpit. This made for good in flight communication between instructor and trainee. Overall, thirty six were built by Edmund Schneider Pty Ltd. A longer wing version (the ES52B) was also introduced that had a better glide ratio (around 25:1). Five examples of this version were built. In Germany a modified ES52 was built incorporating a metal tube fuselage frame and with the addition of a engine driven propeller mounted on top of the wing which enabled the glider to be self launching. This museum collection item consists of the fuselage, tailplane, elevators, fin, rudder from the Mark I, ES 52 Kookaburra, formerly registered as VH-GFF and last owned by the Barcaldine and District Airsports Club of Queensland. The glider was in a damaged condition when it was acquired by the Museum. A decision was made by the Museum to repair the glider for display rather than endeavouring to restore it to an airworthy condition. The reconstruction of the wings is being undertaken by using parts of damaged ES 52 Kookaburra wings (as it happened from later ES 52 Marks). The Log Book for VH-GFF reveals operational life with a succession of gliding clubs around Australia. This exhibit will be of interest to gliding enthusiasts wishing to inspect the popular two seat club trainer of a by-gone era.This is a wood and fabric covered aircraft that is being rebuilt from the components of several aircraft as a non-flying exhibit.Fuselage marked with Edmund Schneider Pty Ltd Serial Number 9 and comes from the glider previously registered as VH-GFF.australian gliding, glider, sailplane, edmund schneider, es 52, kookaburra, barcaldine and district airsports club, victorian motorless flight group, alice springs gliding club, raaf richmond, raaf williamtown, gayndah gliding club, blackwater gliding club, southern downs aero and soaring club, charleville gliding club

This aircraft, the first glider built by Schneiders after they immigrated to Australia, was test flown on 3 January 1953 by Dave Darbyshire and Owen Lewis. It is the only machine of its type. It is essentially a Grunau Baby 2B with a Perspex enclosed cockpit, wing airbrakes and a landing wheel. However, the wing design came from an existing Grunau 3 type that was being built in Germany. The glider has given extensive service for a number of owners – including the Gliding Club of Victoria, Sunraysia Gliding Club, Millicent Gliding Club, Max Bugler of Morwell and Garth Hudson of Brighton in Victoria. Prior to being donated to the Australian Gliding Museum in January 2001 the glider had logged over 2200 hours flying time from over 9000 flights. The glider is an improved Grunau Baby design that Edmund Schneider built after coming to Australia.Single seat glider of wood and fabric construction, with steel wing struts. Currently painted crème with yellow details. Underside of fuselage is painted orange.australian gliding, grunau, grunau baby, schneider, gliding club of victoria, sunraysia gliding club, millicent gliding club, darbyshire, lewis, bugler, hudson

The Bocian is a versatile training sailplane that first flew in 1952. The type has been modified in several respects over the course of production by SZD (tailplane and rudder in particular). About 600 have been built; many for export to 27 countries (including Australia). The aerobatic capability and fine performance (best glide ratio of 26) has enabled the Bocian to be used to train competition pilots as well as those of lesser experience. Many world gliding records were set in the 1950s and 1960s in Bocian gliders. The Museum’s example is a type D test flown in Poland on 3 and 4 April 1963. It was imported into Australia in September 1963 by Austerserve Pty Ltd. The first owner was the Alice Springs Gliding Club and the glider had name “Cumulus” painted on the side of the fuselage (since removed). The glider had recorded 726 hours 46 minutes flying time from 2138 launches as at July 1967 when it was transferred to the Darwin Gliding Club. It appears that the glider was damaged in June 1968. The substantial repairs to the fuselage, both wings and tailplane and other minor repairs were completed on 13 October 1968. The glider continued flying with the Darwin Gliding Club until August 1969 at which time the service to that club amounted to 59 hours 7 minutes flying time from 348 flights. Between August 1969 and August 1976 no flights are recorded in the logbook. It is understood that on its last flight at Bachelor, south of Darwin in the Northern Territory (August 1969) it was severely damaged when it crashed after spinning while being auto-tow launched (although this is not expressly mentioned in the logbook). Reg Hancock purchased the damaged glider and rebuilt the port wing and restored it to airworthy condition (September 1976). It was then transferred to Colac, Victoria, and used by the Colac Gliding Group at the Yeo airfield until February 1981, adding another 153 hours from 403 flights to the glider’s record. After airworthy inspection in September 1982 the glider was used by the Geelong Gliding Club until 1983 (logbook details not held). The 20 year survey was then due and the glider fell out of service. In the course of the most recent restoration attempt it was discovered that the glue used in construction had deteriorated and that it was no longer feasible to bring it back to an airworthy condition. Subject to restoration, this exhibit may be representative of the 1950s - 1960s Bocian two seat sailplane typeThis exhibit is a large two seat glider /sailplane of wood and fabric construction. All components are present with the exception of instruments. However, at the time that the aircraft was transferred to the Museum it had been taken apart for major restoration work. As received it is stripped of the top coats of paint and a number of components (including, amongst others, tip fairings, nose cone and cockpit elements) that were removed for facilitating the repair process. The glider, serial number 803, was registered as VH-GNLaustralian gliding, glider, sailplane, bocian, cumulus, alice springs gliding club, darwin gliding club, colac gliding group, geelong gliding club, hancock

The Vogt LO150 is a sailplane first produced in 1954. Designed in Germany by Alfred Vogt, the LO150 is of wood construction. It has a two piece wing of 15 metre (49 feet) span and a fuselage of monocoque design. The first of the type to be imported into Australia arrived in late 1955. In January 1956 this aircraft type was used to create a world speed record of just under 75 km/h for speed around a 300 km triangle and went on to win the Australian National Gliding Championships. The Museum’s LO150 (VH-GUC) – serial number EB71 was imported from Germany in 1971 by the late Frank Erdmann and an ownership syndicate formed. Following Erdmann it has had a number of owners. Much of its usage was at Bacchus Marsh and Horsham with excusions elsewhere for competition. This Vogt LO150 was last flown on 3 January 1988. Overall, since arriving in Australia, it has flown 315 hours from 273 launches, which is a commendable average performance of over an hour per flight. VH-GUC was donated to the Museum by Warren Mayfield in 2002. Substantial glue deterioration was discovered in one wing and, as a result, a decision has been made not to restore the glider to an airworthy condition. In due course the glider will be repainted and further prepared for display. This exhibit is an example of the Vogt LO150 semi-aerobatic competition sailplane.Single seat competition sailplane of wood construction.Builder's serial number EB71australian gliding, glider, sailplane, vogt, lo-150, erdmann, mayfield, geelong gliding club

The Hutter H17 is a small single seat glider with a wing span of 9.69 metres, designed in 1934 by Wolfgang Hutter, for flying in the Austrian Alps. Construction of the museum’s example, “Sweetwings” (now registered as VH-GQM), commenced in Perth in 1949. It is one of two Hutter H17 gliders built in Western Australia by N.J. Wynne and A.G. Milligan at the time – the other “Fleetwings” (formerly VH-HDQ and since re-registered as VH-GXV) is located at Millicent, South Australia. Ownership transferred to G.R. Reichelt of Tocumwal New South Wales and later to D.B. Hunt of Thornbury in Melbourne and later Mt Isa, Queensland. It was acquired by Bill Riley of Tocumwal who donated it to the Museum. The glider was last flown on 25 October 1979 at Tocumwal. This exhibit is an example of a 1930s small wood and fabric glider that was designed in Austria for hill soaring. It is a simple design that became a popular choice for home building in the post war years in Australia when gliding as a sport was in recovery. Some examples are still flying.Small single seat glider. Fuselage and wing struts are painted yellow. Wings, rudder and tailplane / elevator are primed with pink dope. It has an open cockpit with small clear Perspex wind screen. Instruments include airspeed indicator and altimeter tucked neatly under front edge of the cockpit rim.australian gliding, glider, sailplane, hutter, sweetwings, fleetwings, reichelt, riley, wynne, milligan

The “Northrop” is an American copy of the “Zogling” which was designed in Germany in the 1920s as a training glider. Apparently, the Northrop primary glider takes its name from a Marvin Northrop of Minneapolis who imported a Zogling from Germany and from that glider had plans drawn and published in a magazine called Modern Mechanics in 1930. The Australia Gliding Museum’s Northrop was built over the period of 1970 to 1974. The project was conceived by a pioneer of Australian gliding, Ken Davies, about 1969, as a hobby project and to experience afresh gliding flight of the early years. By that time, few primary gliders, which performed a fundamental role for gliding clubs in the 1930s and 1940s, remained in Australia. Ken began construction and was helped to finish the project by two old time Gliding Club of Victoria members, Dave Darbyshire and Rudi Feil. The glider was test flown on 8 March 1975 at Benalla. The glider was stored at the Gliding Club of Victoria and flown on special occasions in the 1980s. Later it was damaged at the 1996 vintage glider rally at Ararat as a result of a heavy landing. Storage was then provided for the glider by the Victorian Motorless Flight Group at Bacchus Marsh until it was returned to Dave Darbyshire for restoration in 1998. Fully restored, the glider was donated by Iris Davies and Dave Darbyshire to the Australian Gliding Museum in April 2001. This exhibit is the type of machine that formed the basis of the sport of gliding from 1929 to about 1945. The glider consists of an open (uncovered) wooden framed fuselage (painted blue) with a brown vinyl covered seat, fabric covered wooden framed wings of constant chord (painted silver) with provision for attachment of semi-circular cane wing skids, and fabric covered wooden framed tailplane, elevators and rudder (painted silver). When assembled the airframe is wire braced.australian gliding, glider, northrop, zogling, davies, darbyshire, feil, gliding club of victoria, victorian motorless flight group

The Schweizer SGS 2-12 or TG-3A as officially certificated is a glider that was designed in 1941-1942 and produced in United States of America from 1942 for training of military glider pilots. It is understood that over 100 TG-As were supplied to the USA military and at the end of the war many were sold off as surplus. Fred Hoinville imported the Museum’s TG-3A into Australia in August 1950. It is understood that it had been built in 1948 and given construction number G15. On arrival in Australia it was assembled at Bankstown aerodrome and delivered by aero-tow behind a DH Tiger Moth to Camden where Hoinville’s club, the Hinkler Soaring Club, was based. Hoinville’s TG-3A performed well at the Hinkler club in 1950-1951. Several altitude records (including a solo flight to 8000 feet by Grace Roberts – a national women’s record) were set and many soaring flight made over Camden. However, it was badly damaged in a crash landing on 15 April 1951. The glider was repaired after the crash at Camden. It is likely that modifications were made to the cockpit canopy at this time. There were three configuration tried at various times: the original dual cockpit canopy as was standard for TG3As; an unusual dual bubble canopy set up; and a single canopy over the forward seating position (in effect converting the glider to a single seater). When the glider was flown by Hoinville at the 1958 Australian Gliding Championships at Benalla, Victoria in January 1959 (refer The Age Newspaper, January 10, 1959 p.21) it had a single canopy. Records show that the glider was entered on the Australian register as VH-GDI on 6 May 1957. And the Logbook commencing in 1959 shows that ownership passed to the Port Augusta Gliding Club in South Australia on 16 August 1959. Inspections were carried out at that club and airworthiness certificates renewed in 1965. The logbook record indicates that VH-GDI had 1191 flights with an aggregate time in the air of 197 hours at the Wilmington Road Airstrip used by the Port Augusta Club. The glider was transferred to the Cooma Gliding Club, New South Wales. Flying at Cooma began in November 1966 and continued until August 1969: the glider was in the air a further 108 hours from 1067 flights. The last recorded technical inspection of the glider was conducted on 28 September 1968. The glider then passed on to Bill Riley on 20 March 1980 who stored the glider until March 2004 when it was collected by the Australian Gliding Museum. It is not clear whether the current poor state of the airframe is due to accident damage or the conditions under which it has been stored over many years or a combination of factors. Although in poor condition, this exhibit is the sole example of a TG3A ex-US military aircraft in Australia. Further the connection with the story of well-known power and glider pilot Fred Hoinville adds to its historical significance. Tubular metal framed fuselage (without covering and fittings), wooden rudder (no covering) and in damaged condition, wooden fuselage component (formers for fuselage top), Parts of control mechanism, Wooden stringers, Wooden wings without fabric covering and in damaged condition, Ailerons, Tailplane /Elevator without fabric covering, Perspex bubble canopies.australian gliding, glider, sailplane, schweizer, tg 3a, hoinville, roberts, hinkler soaring club, port augusta gliding club, cooma gliding club, riley

The Schleicher K7 is a high wing tandem two-seat sailplane designed in the late 1950s by Rudolf Kaiser for the Alexander Schleicher company in Germany. The fuselage is built using steel tube framing covered with fabric. The swept-forward cantilever wing is of wood and fabric construction with a single spar and a plywood covered leading edge “D” box for strength. The wing is equipped with Schempp-Hirth airbrakes. The K7 first flew in 1959. It is a versatile design that can be used for both basic and more advanced training of pilots. Over 500 were built. VH-GNX was manufactured in Germany and imported into Australia by Edmund Schneider Limited. It was test flown by them at Parafield Aerodrome, Adelaide, South Australia in March 1964. The original owner of VH-GNX was the Adelaide Soaring Club and it was maintained by Edmund Schneider Limited until May 1971. It appears that about this time it was transferred to the Gold Coast Soaring Club. In July 1974, after it had flown for an aggregate 3075 hours from 13919 flights, it was purchased by the Bundaberg Soaring Club. About 10 years later, it was acquired by the Bendigo Gliding Club. At that stage it had recorded over 4600 hours flying time from 21546 launches. When it was retired from service by the Bendigo Gliding Club in June 2006 due to age related defects the hours flown had reached 7259 from 31820 flights. It appears that the airframe has had a relatively trouble free life with only minor damage from storage / ground handling incidents, a heavy landing (January 1987) and a bird strike (January 2002). It was donated to the Museum in April 2007.This exhibit is an example of the Schleicher K7 two seat sailplane type.Two seat high wing glider sailplane finished in white with red detailing.Serial Number 7134, registered as VH-GNX. The registration appears on each side of the Fin / Rudder in red letteringaustralian gliding, glider, sailplane, schleicher, k7, schneider, adelaide soaring club, gold coast soaring club, bundaberg soaring club, bendigo gliding club

The Let 13 Blanik was designed in 1956 by Karel Dlouhý of VZLÚ Letňany as a training glider. It filled that role very well and approximately 3000 have been built since production started in 1958. However, following a fatal accident involving a Blanik in Austria in 2010 that raised concerns about main spar metal fatigue, the type was grounded in Europe and America. In Australia, the extension of the life of this type of glider beyond 5000 hours / 18000 launches is dependent on compliance with directives for the inspection and modification of fatigue critical components. It is understood that VH-GAQ was built in 1971 and first registered on 14 August 1972. It is a Blanik that has been retired from service because of the metal fatigue concerns that apply to the type generally and the expense involved in complying with the applicable directives for on-going airworthiness certification. VH-GAQ was donated to the Australian Gliding Museum by the Australian Junior Gliding Club in 2010. Popular mass produced, metal, two seat sailplane. Used by many clubs in Australia in the 1970s. The Blanik VH-GAQ is a large two seat glider – sailplane of metal construction. It is finished in a white colour scheme with red detailing consisting of a red fuselage nose and adjoining red stripe along the fuselage sides to about midships. The control surfaces (ailerons, flaps, elevators and rudder) are covered with aircraft fabric and painted silver. The Perspex canopy fully encloses the cockpit which is fully equipped for dual flying. Registration VH-GAQ in black on sides of fuselage to the rearaustralian gliding, glider, sailplane, let kunovice, blanik

This Grunau Baby 2B glider, often referred to as the “Blue Grunau”, was built by Australian Sailplanes in 1946 and acquired by a syndicate consisting of Norm Hyde, Rob Dowling, Leo Dowling, Dick Duckworth and Ted Desmond of the Gliding Club of Victoria. Piloted by syndicate members and other GCV members the glider performed well in soaring and cross country flights at the various sites used by the GCV in 1947, 1948 and 1949. The glider went to Sydney for a while and then returned to be operated by another syndicate at the GCV. Pat Burke and Bob McAliece bought the glider in the 1950s and then sold it to Keith, Jack and Bruce Hearn of Melbourne. In 1957 the Blue Grunau moved to Western Australia and was added to the Glider Register as VH-GLC. Thereafter the glider had a series of owners. The glider has come to the Australian Gliding Museum via the RAAFA (WA) Division. The flying record of the Blue Grunau has been logged for the period of 28 December 1957 to 17 September 1975: Time in air – 559 hours 37 minutes from 1513 flights. Single seat glider /sailplane of wooden construction with plywood and fabric covering.australian gliding, glider, sailplane, grunau, blue grunau, australian sailplanes, hyde, dowling, duckworth, desmond, burke, hearn, gliding club of victoria, gliding club of western australia, narrogin gliding club

This glider type was designed by Jim Maupin in United States in the 1970s. The prototype first flew in 1978. It is a design intended as suitable for amateur construction using wood (principally Douglas Fir and Birch plywood). It is understood that hundreds of sets of plans have been sold. It is not known how many Woodstocks have been built but there are at least 3 flyable examples in existence in Australia. Over time the design has been altered increasing the wingspan from 11.9 metres to 12.6 metres and then to 13.1 metres for Types 1, 2 and 3 respectively. Some builders of Woodstock gliders have also made their own changes to the Jim Maupin design. The construction of the Museum’s Woodstock (a “Woodstock 1”) was commenced by Ken Davies who, due to age related health difficulties, was unable to finish the project. The project was taken over by James Garay and was completed in 2001. It is registered with the Gliding Federation of Australia as GFA/HB123 and allocated letters VH-IKL. It is practically a new aircraft with very few flying hours logged. VH-IKL differs from the original Woodstock 1 design in one respect in that the rear fuselage has been modified to enable the tailplane to be removed for de-rigging. The Museum holds technical drawings prepared by Ken Davies in relation to this feature of the glider. James Garay kindly donated VH-IKL to the Australian Gliding Museum in March 2013. An example of a successful glider-sailplane design for amateur construction from the 1970s.Home built single seat sailplane of wooden construction finished in a light desert sand colour with aboriginal art theme markings.Marked with registration – VH-IKLaustralian gliding, glider, sailplane, woodstock, maupin, davies, garay, woody roo

The Skylark 4, the final in the Slingsby Skylark series, dates from 1961. The design heralded a trend towards the use of plastics in the construction of gliders. Slingsby incorporated GRP (glass reinforced plastic) panels to achieve a streamlined fuselage nose and cockpit area while retaining the more traditional wood techniques for the rest of the aircraft. Another notable feature was the smooth wing surface that was obtained using a Gaboon ply skin across the ribs. Best glide performance of 1:33 was found to be comparable with the early full GRP glider designs. The Museum’s example (VH-GTB – C/N 1382) was built in 1963 and originally owned by Chuck Bentson of the UK. It was brought to Australia in 1967 by Jeremy Picket-Heaps and flown at various places including Benalla, Cooma and Gundaroo. In 1970 the glider was transferred to the New England Soaring Club. Many flights were made from Armidale and Bellata in Northern New South Wales. On one occasion, the glider was kept aloft for 8 hours 45 minutes and on another the pilot took it around a 500 kilometre triangle in nearly 8 hours. In 1980 it was sold to Ralph (“Feathers”) Crompton and was flown extensively in South Australia until 1988. The final owner before the glider was given to the Museum in 2004 was Ross Dutton of Melbourne. The last recorded flight occurred in 1992. The glider at that point had logged over 2000 hours flying time from about 2000 launches. The airframe is currently being restored to flying condition. Technically this aircraft represents the state of the art at the stage that sailplane design was changing from traditional wood construction to composites (GRP) The Slingsby Skylark 4 is high wing single seat sailplane of mainly wooden construction with plywood and fabric covering. However, the cockpit and forward part of the fuselage consists of glass reinforced plastic which was innovative at the time that the type was designed. The cockpit provides for a semi reclining position for the pilot protected with a full Perspex canopy. The wings are made up of a centre section with constant chord and tapered wing tips. The aircraft has a conventional arrangement for the tail stabiliser / control surfaces. The sailplane bears construction number 1382 and is registered in Australia as VH-GTBaustralian gliding, glider, sailplane, skylark, slingsby, bentson, picket-heaps, crompton, new england soaring club, dutton

The Scheibe Bergfalke II is a high performance (for its day) and relatively inexpensive two seat sailplane designed by Egon Scheibe. It appeared in 1953 as a derivative of the Scheibe Mu13 Bergfalke and incorporated design changes to resolve and simplify structural issues that affected the Mu13. The Bergfalke II-55 followed in 1955. About 300 of the Bergfalke II and II-55 types were built in Germany and Sweden. This aircraft of the Bergfalke II-55 type was built by Scheibe in 1961 (work number 339). After a long life at Fliegergruppe Leimen e.V. logging 6754 flights and 1588 hours in the air, the glider was imported into Australia from Germany in June 2004. The glider was registered as VH-GKZ in January 2005 by Thomas Dattler of Millumbindy and flown only a small number of occasions (probably at Byron Soaring Centre). The Mangalore Gliding Club appears to have taken an interest in the glider in 2006 and completed routine Form 2 inspections in 2006 and 2009. The amount of usage during this period is unclear as the logbook records held are incomplete. In January 2012 the glider was purchased by the Southern Riverina Gliding Club and flown at Tocumwal until it was damaged in 2013 due to being blown over while at rest on the airfield. The 10 year survey was due in March 2013 and a decision was made by the club to donate the glider to the Australian Gliding Museum instead of completing the necessary repairs for returning it to an airworthy condition. It is estimated that the glider was flown about 300 times and perhaps logged about 140 hours in the air in Australia. If restored this exhibit will be representative of the Scheibe Bergfalke II-55 sailplane type (a rarity in Australia).Tandem two seat sailplane of a wood and tubular steel construction covered with plywood and fabric. It has a fully enclosed cockpit under perspex (which is missing from this airframe). The wings which join the fuselage at shoulder height are swept forward such that the aircraft can be flown solo from the front seat and be properly balanced. The aircraft is in a damaged condition. Registration "GKZ" on sides of fuselage glider, sailplane, australian gliding, scheibe, bergfalke, byron soaring centre, mangalore gliding club, dattler, southern riverina gliding club, tocumwal

The Ka 2, a tandem two seat training sailplane of 15 metre wing span, was designed by Rudolf Kaiser for Schleicher in 1953. It was a versatile craft due to its good cross country soaring capability. With the Ka 2B, the design was improved in 1955 by lengthening the wing span to 16 metres and increasing the dihedral and tip washout. The fuselage was lengthened slightly as well. Schleicher built 42 Ka2s from 1953 to 1955 and 75 Ka 2Bs from 1955 to 1957. In addition Schleicher supplied kits for construction of the sailplane by independent builders. The Australian Gliding Museum’s example is the single Ka 2b built in Australia from plans and is designated as GFA-HB-47. The club concerned was the Illawarra Soaring Club of Sydney. The glider registered as VH-GHO and first flew in October 1960. However, within a short time it was badly damaged and needed major repairs which took over a year to complete. After lengthy service at Illawarra Soaring Club it was transferred to the Stirling Gliding Club in Western Australia in August 1976. Again it suffered damage in a landing accident in 1978. The damaged glider was put into storage at Northam where it remained for approximately 11 years. It was acquired by Mike Valentine in 1989 and brought back to flying condition at Bacchus Marsh, Victoria. The last entry in the log book is dated January 1997 at which time it had accumulated 1170 hours from 2446 flights. The last owner prior to transfer to the Australian Gliding Museum was John Ashford of the Geelong Gliding Club. The Museum's Ka 2B sailplane is a potentially airworthy example of this German 1950s sailplane type. It is a rarity in Australia as the only Ka 2b appearing on the Australian register.Tandem two seat sailplane of wood and fabric construction finished in cream and red colour schemeRegistration VH-GHO (with "HO" letters painted on the fin / rudder) Serial number - GFA HB 47 australian gliding, glider, sailplane, schleicher, kaiser, ka 2, illawarra soaring club, stirling gliding club, valentine, ashford

The Salamandra is a Polish glider designed by Waclaw Czerwinski at the Military Glider Workshops in Krakow in 1936. This glider, designated “W.W.S.1”, was produced in substantial numbers prior to the second world war and used in Poland and some other eastern European countries for training pilots. Only one example survived the war, hidden away in the village of Goleszow in Silesia. In addition, no technical drawings could be found, so when the glider was discovered, the Gliding Institute being keen to re-establish gliding in Poland, used the glider to draw up new plans for construction. Five were built for the Institute in 1947 before production was resumed of the “Salamandra 48” at the SZD Jezow Workshops. Improvement were made by adding airbrakes and structural changes for the “Salamandra 49” and a windscreen and larger tailplane were changes adopted for the “Salamandra 53”. An export version designated “53A” was sold to and built under licence in China. Production of the Salamandra ceased in the early 1960s. Total production may have been in excess of 500. The glider was well regarded as a light weight trainer capable of soaring performance. The Museum’s replica was built by Ray Ash and may be may be classified as a “Salamandra 53”. However, he has added something of his own to the design by replacing the cable runs in the wings with control rods. The glider is substantially complete. The wings and tail / rudder surfaces have been covered with poly-fibre fabric. The fuselage woodwork is sealed with varnish. In addition to the finishing work (including painting) and rigging of the main components, the linkages for Ray’s control rod modification may need further engineering to make them operational. The Ray Ash Salamandra is the first of the type to appear in Australia. The Salamandra did not play any role in the development of gliding in Australia in the early years. However, it is an important exhibit in that it shows in tangible form a nacelle fuselage training glider in configuration and construction detail. As such it revisits the pioneering era of the 1930s and 1940s in Australia when wood, wire and fabric were the rule and the nacelle primary glider was generally the first step up for pilots who had mastered the basics in an open primary.Nacelled solo training glider of traditional wood and fabric construction. Construction incomplete.Noneaustralian gliding, sailplane, glider, salamandra, czerwinshi, poland, ash

The FS-24 Phonix is the first sailplane design to be built using a moulded fiberglass sandwich technique. It was designed by Hermann Nagele and Richard Eppler leading a group setup for the purpose at Stuttgart Technical University in the early 1950s. Initial construction was undertaken at workshops of Wolf Hirth and the first prototype was completed at the Bolkow Aircraft Company where Nagele and another member of the group, Rudi Lindner, had gained employment. It flew on 27 November 1957. Two further prototypes were built incorporating a T-tail and other refinements. Eight in all were built before production was stopped in 1961. A number of gliding records were broken in Phonix sailplanes in Germany in 1962-1963. It was found to have a best glide ratio of 40:1. The Museum’s example, No. 403 was originally a prototype built on 25 May 1960 [Registration D-8354]. It was converted at Bolkow to a Phonix T in 1963 and sold to a private owner in Switzerland [Registration HB-746] and later then to gliding club Segelfluggruppe Solothurn in 1965. The glider returned to Germany in 1971 (Meersburg) and re-registered as D-0738. It moved to a new owner in Allershausen in 1976, and again to Lindhoft in 1982. In 1983 the glider was sold to owners at Hasselt, Belgium and given registration OO-ZQD. In 1989 a further change of ownership occurred and the glider went to Leusden in the Netherlands where it was registered as PH-949. In 2006 the Phonix No.403 was imported into Australia by John Ashford of the Geelong Gliding Club. On 30 January 2007, it was registered as VH-GRP. However, as at January 2016 it has not been flown in Australia. In the course of its flying history the glider was damaged several times and repaired. At one stage a larger rudder was fitted and later on this modification was reversed. With the original conversion to a Phonix T and subsequent repairs and changes to equipment the weight of the airframe increased from 182 kg to approximately 220 kg. Nevertheless, the wing loading is a modest 20kg/square metre. As at January 2016, minor repairs and airworthiness certification are required to return the glider to flying condition. This exhibit is highly significant as it is one of only eight of this pioneering sailplane design. It is the only one in Australia. Glassfibre single seat sailplane, finished white with blue stripes on fin and rudder.Australian registration GRP on rudder; Serial Number 403 and Vintage glider club of Netherlands plaque in cockpitaustralian gliding, sailplane, glider, fs-24, phonix, nagele, eppler, lindner, stuttgart technical university, bolkov aircraft company, segelfluggruppe solothurn, ashford, geelong gliding club.

The SZD-30 Pirat was designed by Jerzy Smielkiewicz and first flew in 1966. Over 700 have been produced. The example registered as VH-GYN which was donated to the Australian Gliding Museum by Alan McMaster is one of two that have come to Australia. It carries serial number B-333 and was imported as a new aircraft which was test flown on 29 August 1970. During its logged flying life (last entry 15 April 1990) it was operated in the Northern Territory and Queensland and passed through a number of owners before Alan McMaster at Rockhampton; initially the Alice Springs Gliding Club and then individuals at Charleville and Yeronga in South Brisbane. The aircraft flew 1909 hours from 2073 launches. The log discloses numerous silver distance and duration achievements. The Museum's Pirat sailplane is an example of this popular Polish sailplane type and is indicative of the state of sailplane design in the 1960s.Single seat sailplane of mainly wood construction (some plastic elements) finished in white with green detailing. Sailplane serial number B-333 and registration “YN” australian gliding, glider, sailplane, szd-30, pirat, mcmaster, alice springs, rockhampton

The exhibit is the prototype Kingfisher Mark 1 (serial number 23) built by Edmund Schneider Ltd and first flown on 8 July 1956. It was first registered as VH-GDH on 3 May 1957. The ES57 Kingfisher is a small to medium size single seat glider that was designed to have similar control responses to the successful two seat trainer, the ES 52 Kookaburra, thus providing for a smooth transition for solo rated pilots to advance to a single seat machine. Edmund Schneider Ltd built nine Kingfishers and supplied kits for two more for construction by others. Harold Bradley (South Australia) built a modified Kingfisher with shoulder mounted wings. Kingfisher serial number 23 was originally owned by the Waikerie Gliding Club (South Australia) (1956 – 1959). From 1959, it had a nomadic existence in the hands of a string of owners in New South Wales, Queensland, Northern Territory and finally Queensland, again. In the early 1990s the glider was deregistered and flown as an ultralight sailplane. After a change in ownership, the glider was moved to Hervey Bay, Qld and re-registered as VH-GKN. After very limited use, the glider was sold again and placed in storage at Hervey Bay. In January 2004, the owner, who by then had moved overseas, entrusted the glider to Ian Patching and Geoff Hearn who moved it to Melbourne. Ian Patching returned the glider to flying condition in February 2004. Since then, it has been stripped and recovered with new aircraft fabric and requires finishing work. The logged hours flown for the Kingfisher total approximately 190 hours from 549 flights. The glider was donated to the Australian Gliding Museum on 3 June 2014.The Exhibit is one of the Edmund Schneider Ltd gliders that was designed and built in Australia in the late 1950s. It is one of the four Kingfishers that are known to survive – the Bradley Kingfisher and two of the standard Kingfishers are known to have been destroyed – the fates of five are unknown. Single seat high wing wooden sailplane with plywood and fabric covering, in a partly restored condition. Serial number 23australian gliding, glider, sailplane, es 57, kingfisher, patching, schneider

The Golden Eagle is an original design by Geoff Richardson. Geoff commenced gliding in the early days of the sport circa 1933 in Melbourne, flying at Coode Island and Mt Frazer. In 1934, he began construction of a secondary type glider but scrapped it upon realizing that a better design was needed. He conducted further research and came up with a sailplane of similar size and general arrangement to the Grunau Baby but with a “Gull” wing using a Gottingen 535 wing section (the same as for the Grunau Baby). Geoff did all the technical calculations himself and even made up and tested a Casein glue for the construction. Geoff competed construction of his new sailplane (which he called the “Golden Eagle”) in 1937 and it was test flown at Laverton at the western edge of Melbourne in September 1937. On the same day, at Laverton, the Gliding Club of Victoria flew its new Grunau Baby 2 sailplane which it had imported as a finished machine from Edmund Schneider in Germany. The Golden Eagle was found to fly well, having a similar performance to the Grunau Baby. In the 1950s, the Golden Eagle was modified by rebuilding the front of the fuselage to enclose the cockpit with a Perspex canopy. A landing wheel was incorporated behind the skid. Spoilers were added to the wings and a trim tab to the elevators. The Golden Eagle has been flown with the VMFG (Victorian Motorless Flight Group) for most of its long life. When donated to the Australian Gliding Museum in 2016 by Alan Patching it was probably the oldest, continuously airworthy glider in the world. Having regard to the historical significance of the Golden Eagle, the Museum has decided to not to fly it anymore to avoid risk of loss or damage. The exhibit is of great significance for Australian gliding history – the Golden Eagle is a flyable 1930s aircraft in excellent condition that was designed and built by an Australian gliding pioneer. Single seat wood and fabric sailplane finished with white wings, tailplane and rudder and yellow fuselage Registration letters “FC” on fuselage nose port side, Australian flag, Vintage Gliders Australia and VMFG decals on rudder, “Golden Eagle” lettering in red on each side of the fuselage below the canopy, Aboriginal flag decal on port side of fuselage below the canopy. australian gliding, glider, sailplane, golden eagle, richardson, patching, vmfg, victorian motorless flight group

The Hall Cherokee II glider is an American design for amateur construction from plans. The designer was Stan Hall (1915-2009), a professional engineer, who gained extensive experience in the United States aviation industry during World War 2 including the programs for military gliders. He continued to work as an engineer for aircraft manufacturers and as a consultant to the industry after the war. He was active in gliding and, in particular, the home built sailplane movement. The Cherokee II was one of about 10 glider designs that he produced: it came out in 1956. It is understood that over 100 Cherokee gliders have been built. In Australia the number is possibly 10 or 11. The Hall Cherokee VH-GVO was built by R.D Meares of Caringbah, New South Wales. The glider was registered as VH-GVO on 11 October 1973 and given serial number “GFA-HB-82” by the Gliding Federation of Australia. The Logbook for VH-GVO appears to be a complete record of the flying history; in aggregate 210 hours 40 minutes in the air from 331 flights. The first test hop occurred on 29 July 1972 at Camden, New South Wales. VH-GVO was last flown on 22 July 1986. Many of the flights recorded are of one or two hours duration. The glider was last inspected and certified as airworthy and in a reasonable condition at the Hunter Valley Gliding Club in July 1986. Since that time, until transferred to the Australian Gliding Museum, the glider was in storage. Structural restoration work has been completed on the fuselage and one wing. However, inspection of the other wing revealed extensive damage to the ribs and spars and consequently a decision was taken to make it a static exhibit. The exhibit is an example of home built construction of a type that has proved popular amongst amateur glider builders.The Hall Cherokee (formerly registered as VH-GVO) is a single seat wooden home built glider. The glider is constructed from wood, plywood, fabric and metal fittings, all commercial grade except for main wing fittings, pulleys, cables and bolts. The fuselage is simple with four main longerons and bulkheads with diagonal bracing. The wing has two identical solid spars which form a geodetic structure, hence the leading edge is non-structural. Registration VH-GVO – serial number GFA-HB-82 australian gliding, glider, sailplane, hall, cherokee, meares, hunter valley gliding club

The aircraft (Serial Number 159 – registration VH-GNT) was assembled by RAAF Richmond Gliding Club from a kit manufactured by Schweizer Aircraft Corporation, Elmira, New York State, USA, in 1963. First flown 21 December 1963. Served at RAAF Base, Richmond, NSW, until December 1978 at which time it had recorded 1981 hours from 9870 flights. The aircraft was sold to Peter Fitzgerald and moved to Gosford and later on, to Queanbeyan where it was stored under cover until April 1983. It was not flown between 1978 and July 1983. In 1983 the glider was sold to Harold Walton. A Certificate of Airworthiness inspection was done by various members of the Canberra Gliding Club where minor repairs were made. On 24 July 1983, it first flew on the airworthiness certificate test flight at Bunyan, NSW, the home of the Canberra Gliding Club. In service at Bunyan until November 1986 the hours flown increased to 2078 from 10249 flights. A certificate of airworthiness inspection was completed on 11 April 1987 but the aircraft was apparently only recorded a few more hours by 9 January 1998 when it last took to the air. When donated to the Australian Gliding Museum in January 2020, the aircraft was in storage at premises of the donor, Harold Walton, at Walkerville, South Australia.This aircraft is the only one of the 258 SGS 2.22s produced by Schweizer to come to Australia. It is a good representative example of the SGS 2.22 type which featured metal construction for production of a robust club trainer. The aircraft apparently played a useful role over many years at Richmond and Canberra.High wing two seat utility glider of metal construction with fabric covering.Registration letters ‘GNT’ on each side of vertical stabiliseraustralian gliding, sailplane, glider, schweizer, raaf, richmond, fitzgerald, walton, canberra, bunyan.

The Pilatus B4 is an all metal intermediate sailplane meeting Standard Class rules that was designed in 1966 by Ingo Herbst, Manfred Küppers and Rudolf Reinke. It did not immediately go into production. In 1972 Pilatus Aircraft of Switzerland acquired a licence to build the aircraft and began production. The PCII and PCIIA versions were semi-aerobatic. The PC11AF released in 1975 was rated as fully aerobatic. By 1980, when Pilatus sold the rights to manufacture of the aircraft to Nippi Aircraft of Japan, 322 of the Pilatus B4 had been produced. Nippi Aircraft built a further 13 and also one two seat version. The Pilatus B4 proved popular in Australia with 26 appearing on the Australian register. The Museum’s example is a basic semi-aerobatic type (Serial Number 092) that was built in 1974. It is registered as VH-GID on 8 July 1974 by H.G. Sutton of Mandura, Western Australia and flown out of the Narrogin Gliding Club in Western Australia until September 1986 when it was sold to the Albury – Corowa Gliding Club, New South Wales. In 1999 it was acquired by Michael Green and moved to Townsville, Queensland. The aircraft changed ownership again in 2004 and fell out of use for nearly 4 years. By then it had recorded 4377 hours in the air from 4304 flights. It returned to service briefly in January 2008 (5 flights totalling about 5 hours). It was donated to the Museum by David Millward of the Geelong Gliding Club, Victoria, on 10 April 2017. The aircraft is representative of a popular imported 1970s intermediate single seat sailplane design of aluminium alloy construction.Single seat sailplane of metal alloy constructionWhite colour scheme with yellow fuselage underside highlighted by blue stripe – “Pilatus B4” in black lettering on starboard side of cockpit – black anti-glare paint on the fuselage nose – Registration “GID” on the underside of port wing.australian gliding, glider, sailplane, pilatus b4, sutton, narrogin, albury, corowa, green, townsville, millward, geelong

These hoes were the standard thinning tool for sugarbeet, and allowed a standard space between seedlings. Thinning was back-breaking work, usually carried out by a transient work force.These hoes are probably still commonly in the possession of old gardeners. They are important as the only tool required of a large, transient workforce that worked under extremely difficult conditions.A metal thinning hoe of four piece construction, with a turned wooden handle attached to the tool by a nail. The blade is welded onto a bent holder, which is in turn welded to the metal extension of the handle. There is cloth inside the ferrule.sugarbeet