From the title page: "THE/ PRIVATE WAR/ OF THE / SPOTTERS/ A HISTORY OF THE/ NEW GUINEA AIR WARNING WIRELESS COMPANY/ February 1942-April 1945"Hard cover book with dust cover. Hard cover - cardboard, with green colour buckram, gold colour print on spine. Dustcover - paper. black, orange and white print on green colour background. Illustrated - front, copy of an artwork depicting a soldier within jungle foliage holding binoculars, aircraft and camp structures in the background. Flaps with printed information. 296 pages, cut, plain, off white paper. Illustrated black and white photography, drawings and maps - including front and back end papers. Inscription noted on front end paper. Handwritten details - blue ink pen. "Len Burke" publications, books, ww2, new guinea, military history, aif

This Dunstable Kestrel glider (which originally was finished in silver paint) was built in 1939 by Ric New and members of the Lake Pinjar Soaring Club. It first flew on 26 December 1939 at Lake Pinjar. The first extensive flight was on 7 January 1940 when Ric New managed to stay aloft for 30 minutes and reach a height of 3000 metres. Unfortunately the Kestrel was badly damaged the same day when another club member Jim Brabazon stalled and spun in. The Kestrel was repaired by June 1940 and flown extensively at Lake Pinjar in 1940 and 1941 until Government authorities intervened and ploughed up Lake Pinjar as a wartime measure to prevent it being used as a landing field by the enemy [Allan Ash, Gliding in Australia, pp 92 – 94]. The Lake Pinjar Soaring club was reformed as the Perth Gliding Club after the end of the war and was joined by Ric New with his Kestrel [Allan Ash, Gliding in Australia, p 103]. The glider was held in storage at the Gliding Club of Western Australia prior to transfer to the Australia Gliding Museum. The Deed of Gift indicates that it was formerly owned by Wally Williams, also from Western Australia. The aircraft is in poor condition and has some non-original elements. It is one of three that currently exist. Nevertheless it is considered to be an important exhibit for relating the history of gliding in Western Australia.Aircraft of wood structure skinned with plywood and fabric – off-white colour scheme – crazed flaking paint on fuselage – nose of fuselage has been modified by addition of streamlining – damage includes impact holes to plywood, especially on starboard side – wings have been stripped of fabric covering and some ribs are missing – tailplane and rudder are in reasonable condition although, like wings, have been stripped of fabric. Overall, while the main elements of this aircraft are present, there are a number of missing fittings and will require extensive works to restore to a static display standard.australian gliding, glider, sailplane, dunstable, kestrel, bill manuel, ric new, lake pinjar soaring club, lake pinjar, gliding club of western australia

The book is for training purposes for Bosuns Mates who are experienced Navy Seaman. Set up for structured training.A.4 size book, 242 pages with emblem of Royal Navy on cover with a picture of a deck gun on the cover. Contains Training program, maintenance schedules, definitions, aircraft identification, ship identification including Australian Navy etc. Book is bound with plastic, 20 ring binding.Title on cover; "Basic Bosuns Mate Gunnery Course".royal navy, gunnery, book, training manual

This appears to be a low production hand assembled book presented to Suppliers of the Beaufort Production Project. This book to F. W. Haig who was the sales executive of Vacuum Oil Company.Black cover book bound with three brass screws, 82 pages with typed text and photo prints glued to each page. Describes the Beaufort Project and organizational structure of the Beaufort Division, Department of Aircraft Production in Victoria and NSW from 1939. Some photo prints have come unstuck and are missing.Gold leaf stamping on front cover reads F.W. Haig & Beaufort Division emblem. Inside front cover hand written and signed "With complements from Clarrie Scott 24-12-44" (company director service)

ES 56 Nymph Following the successful introduction of the ES 52 Kookaburra two-seater in mid-1954, Edmund Schneider Ltd designed a higher performance single seat sailplane of similar construction and with similar handling qualities. It was designated the ES 56 and became known as the ES56 “Nymph”. The ES56 Nymph was a success in that it delivered the anticipated performance and was found to have satisfactory flying characteristics. However, only the prototype (“Nymph -I”) and three production examples (“Nymph-II”) were built. Schneiders made some changes to the design before building the production version. The wing chord at the tip on the prototype measured 650 mm. This was reduced to 500 mm for subsequent builds. The explanation is that provision was made in the original design for the possible lengthening of the tapered wing to 13 metres. However, apparently it was decided to retain the 11.900 metre span which allowed the tip chord to be reduced slightly. Other changes included the installation of scissor type air brakes in the wing instead of simple hinged flap spoilers and the addition of a landing wheel behind the skid on the fuselage. On one of the Nymph-II a dorsal was added on top of the fuselage forward of the vertical fin when repairs were made rectifying damage incurred as a result of an accident at Benalla on 31 March 1963. Even before these ES56 gliders were finished, Edmund Schneider Ltd decided to offer a less expensive single seat design to cater in particular for newly solo pilots, the ES57 Kingfisher. With the Kingfisher, Schneiders reverted to a traditional airfoil (Gott 549) for the wing instead of the laminar flow section that was chosen for the Nymph in the pursuit of performance. As such, the Kingfisher was more appropriately characterised as a single seat version of the Kookaburra in comparison to the Nymph. Schneiders continued for a time to offer the ES56 Nymph as a high-performance sailplane. However, its place in the market was soon overtaken by imported designs with superior performance, such as the Schleicher KA6, which Schneiders also imported and built under license. Nymph-I was test flown in December 1955 and entered by Harry Schneider into the gliding championships held at Waikerie from 5th to 16th of that month. Harry finished 12th in the individual placing out of a field of approximately 24. The capabilities of the Nymph were further demonstrated by Harry Schneider in January 1956 with a Gold C flight of 193 miles from Gawler in South Australia to Walpeup in Victoria. Nymph-I was acquired by the Port Pirie Gliding Club in South Australia. It has been saved and restored and is a regular feature at vintage glider rallies in Victoria and New South Wales. See Museum Newsletter No 35 Winter Edition 2017 pages 3 -6, for that story. The Nymph-II production models were delivered by Edmund Schneider Ltd in October 1956 to the Gliding Club of Victoria, the Victorian Motorless Flight Group and the Royal Australian Navy Gliding Association. The VMFG flew its Nymph in the First National Gliding Championships at Tocumwal, NSW, in December 1956 and all three were flown at the Second National Gliding Championships at Benalla in 29th December 1958 to 8th January 1959, delivering competitive performances based on handicap. Nymph-I Serial Number 17 Original owner – Port Pirie Gliding Club, S.A. Registered VH-GHG on 20 August 1957 Re-registered VH-GHA on 11 October 2016 Currently Raywood, Victoria Believed airworthy Nymph-II Serial Number 20 Original owner – R.A.N. Gliding Association Registered VH-GDX on 20 May 1957 Currently Locksley, Victoria. In storage Nymph-II Serial Number 21 Original owner – Gliding Club of Victoria Registered VH-GHU on 27 August 1957 Currently Bendick Murrell, N.S.W. In storage Nymph-II Serial Number 22 Original owner – Victorian Motorless Flight Group Registered VH-GFE on 5 March 1957 Currently Bacchus Marsh, Victoria Under restoration for display. The Museum’s exhibit is the ES56, serial number 22, registered as VH-GFE. The glider was flown by the VMFG in Victoria until approximately September 1968. GFA records show that it was transferred to Queensland in 1968, and it passed through several owners until the mid-1970s. Information received indicates that it was flown by the Leichardt Soaring Club at Mount Isa in the (late?) 1960s. The history from then is not presently known except to say that it has been kept in dry storage for many years. It is not known when the glider was last flown. What is Significant? The Schneider ES 56 Nymph single seat sailplane, serial number 22, designed and built in 1955-1956, by Edmund Schneider Ltd in Adelaide. It was delivered to its original owner, the Victorian Motorless Flight Group, in October 1956, and registered as VH-GFE on 5 March 1957. How it is Significant? The ES56 Nymph is of historical, aesthetic, scientific and research, and social significance to the Australian gliding community. Why it is Significant? The ES56 is of historical significance as it was designed and built by Edmund and Harry Schneider. The Schneiders immigrated to Australia after the end of the second world war bringing with them considerable expertise in relation to glider design and construction. Over the following decades they maintained a close association with the Gliding Federation of Australia and the gliding clubs and through their glider production made a major contribution to the sport. The ES56 is part of that story. The ES56 in its design and construction exhibits the glider construction technology of the time, which principally consisted of lightweight wooden framework skinned with ply and doped fabric. It exbibits design innovation, notably the use of a laminar flow wing profile in pursuit of better glide performance. Also, considerable attention was given to simplifying the structure in order to keeping cost and the weight low. The ES56 played a useful role at gliding clubs where it was operated, especially the late 1950s and early 1960s and is remembered well by pilots who flew her. The glider is in the course of restoration and provides an insight into the skills and workmanship that were involved in design, building and maintenance of these wooden aircraft. It is of aesthetic and scientific and research significance. Glider airframe of a traditional wood and fabric covered constructionNoneglider, sailplane, edmund schneider, harry schneider, es56, nymph, es57, kingfisher, victorian motorless flight group, gliding club of victoria, ran gliding association, port pirie gliding club, leichardt soaring club.