The Schreder HP 14V is an all metal single seat sailplane designed by Richard Schreder in America. The design is an evolution of Schreder’s metal sailplane designs that date from the late 1950s. Schreder won the United States National Soaring Championship in 1966 in the prototype HP 14. He marketed the glider in kit form in the 1960s and 1970s and allowed Slingsby in the UK to further develop the design for production. Schreder HP14 V, registered as VH-GGB, was built in South Australia by Harry Bache of the Waikerie Gliding Club in the 1970s. Martin Simons, an authority on vintage sailplanes (including Slingsby types), refers to this airframe as “built entirely from scratch”. After Bache, this Schreder HP14V passed on to E.G. Moore and N.L. Lovell at Ararat in Western Victoria, then Graeme Rickert of the Canberra Gliding Club and finally, to Greg O’Sullivan of the Geelong Gliding Club. The glider was first flown on 20 December 1975. It appears to have been flown regularly over its life to 2015 and the cumulative use being 1386 hours flown from 702 launches. The log book does not disclose details of flights except as aggregates of flights and times. Details of notable flights by Bache and Moore et al are not available. However, reports from Rickert and O’Sullivan indicate that a good number of cross-country flights of 300km or longer were achieved in this aircraft. A well-engineered metal sailplane from the 1970s with good soaring performance which was designed for amateur construction. All metal single seat glider sailplane with a distinctive V-tail, finished in a white and blue colour schemeRegistration letters 'GGB' on sides of fuselageaustralian gliding, glider, sailplane, schreder, slingsby, bache, waikerie gliding club, moore, lovell, rickert, o’sullivan, canberra gliding club, geelong 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.

These are the recollections of Alan Menere (1915 – 2001). Alan grew up in Moonee Ponds, Victoria, and moved to Bendigo while in his early 20s. There he met some like-minded young men who enjoyed challenges and matters mechanical. Flying was the adventure of the time, and they decided to give it a go. There was no intention to be on the leading edge of gliding technology. The challenge was to fly, and by their own efforts. They were aided in this by the embryonic regulatory arrangements covering light aircraft construction and flying, a sense of optimistic can-do, and the cavalier estimation of risks that goes with being in your early 20s. The events described here took place against a darkening political background. Alan and his mates were politically aware, very left wing, and viewed the gathering storm in Europe with apprehension. They could see from early on that war was coming, and it would change everything. Prevented from joining the Air Force by his red-green colour blindness, Alan joined the Army the day after the Pearl Harbour attack. He served in an Armoured Reconnaissance Unit in Western Australia, then with the Army Education Service in New Britain. After the War he joined the Commonwealth Public Service. He moved to Canberra, but his Bendigo habits stayed with him, as he built sailboards and carved propellers, to the admiration of his sons. Alan developed macular degeneration in his mid-60s. He retired to Port Stephens, fishing and socializing when he wasn’t tinkering with wing-sails for his catamaran. As he could touch-type, he quickly learned to use a computer. Very aware that he was the last member of the Bendigo group still alive, he resolved to set down his flying experiences. The images he selected are included, but there are many more from the Bendigo days.A CD entitled "Alan Menere - Recollections of Gliding in Bendigo in the late 1930s". The CD contains 33 documents consisting of one word file, one PDF file (entitled "The Urge to Fly") and the rest are of either photos of the Bendigo Gliding club or generally around Bendigo itself. Also included are some paper clippings of accidents that happened and description of flights.history, bendigo, bendigo gliding club, alan menere