The T35 Austral was developed by Slingsby Aviation from the Slingsby T31 with the wing span increased and a larger rudder to improve performance. This was done in response to an order from an Australian gliding club. The Museum’s glider was built from a Slingsby kit imported from the UK in 1952 and assembled by the Waikerie Gliding Club. The glider came on the Australian register as VH-GFX in May 1956. It was later transferred to the Renmark Gliding Club. In 1968 it was acquired by the RAAF Gliding Club at Laverton, Victoria. The existing log book records for the Museum’s T35 Austral are incomplete. Nevertheless the information at hand shows that it was launched over 17000 times and spent about 2400 hours in the air. It would appear that the glider has not been used for many years, the last flight recorded by the RAAF Gliding Club for this aircraft being in September 1971. As far as is known VH-GFX is the only example of the type to be built. The Slingsby T35 is a modified Tandem Tutor two seat glider that had extensive service at a number of Australian gliding clubs over a period of approximately 15 years from the mid 1950s. The Slingsby T35 is an open cockpit, tandem, two-seater glider with high, pylon mounted two piece wing supported by double, wire braced, steel tube struts. australian gliding, glider, sailplane, slingsby, waikerie gliding club, renmark gliding club, raaf gliding club

This unique aircraft was conceived in 1943 as a two seat trainer. A very large part of the design work can be attributed to Jock Barratt and Harold Bradley. The general layout adopted is similar to the Kite I and Kite II single seat sailplanes of Martin Warner and Allan Campbell. Having regard to this heritage, the glider was originally named Kite III but renamed Pelican 2, perhaps because it was the second two seat training glider built by the Waikerie Gliding Club – the first being the Pelican, a reconfigured Pratt Utility glider. Pelican 2 was first flown in 1952 and regularly since then, at least until about 1992. The Pelican 2’s performance was found to be very good for sailplanes of its era and was often used for more advanced flying in addition to training new pilots. Very few changes have been made to the Pelican 2 over the years. The undercarriage was modified after its initial testing to improve the placement of the wheels. The trailing edge of the rudder (originally straight) was rounded adding to the surface area. The twin shoulder tow line bridles were replaced with a belly hook when aviation design rules declared shoulder bridles dangerous and a nose hook has since been added to allow for aero-towing. A unique home grown sailplane design associated with Australian gliding pioneers Wooden 2 seat glider sailplane with fabric covering. Distinctive features include the pod and boom fuselage with side by side seating for pilot and a second person. The canopy of perspex supported by aluminum framing opens with port and starboard segments separately folding upwards and forward. The instrument panel includes altimeter, airspeed indicator, slip indicator and variometers. In addition to the usual controls, there is a trim operated by a small wheel mounted centrally, at head height, on the bulkhead at the rear of the cockpit. Incorporated in the skid under the fuselage pod are two wheels (one approximately midships and the other at the rear end). It has a three piece cantilever wing of approximately nearly 17 metres. The ailerons run almost full length of the outer wing segments. A Gottingen 426 section has been used changing to M6 at the tips. Outer wing segments are joined to the centre section to give about 300 mm of dihedral at the tips. The glider is equipped with airbrakes. The colour scheme consists of orange fuselage with black nose and skid. The tailplane / elevator and rudder are painted white. The wing is predominantly white with an orange leading edge. Registration VH-GFY On each side of rudder – “Pelican II” in black lettering on a rectangle of silver On each side of fuselage pod the letters ‘FY’ On each side of the fuselage, below the edge of the cockpit opening – “WAIKERIE” in black paint. australian gliding, glider, sailplane, kite, pelican, waikerie gliding club, jock barratt, harold bradley, martin warner, allan campbell

This aircraft was designed by Edmund Schneider as a single seat medium performance sailplane. Originally designated as the Grunau 3b but later named the Grunau 4. However, it was a new design with fully enclosed cockpit. The main point of difference to earlier Schneider Grunau designs was the tapered wings with the Gottingen 549 aerofoil. This design feature gave the Grunau 4 a better speed range compared to the Grunau Baby 2b or the Grunau 3. The prototype flew on 6 December 1953 and it went to the Waikerie Gliding Club. A second was delivered to the Dubbo Gliding Club in October of the next year and a third (the Australian Gliding Museum’s exhibit) built for the Adelaide Soaring Club in 1959 (registered as VH-GLX on 21 October 1959). Another was built by Josef Brabec from a Schneider supplied kit from 1954 to 1956. The log book indicates that the glider recorded 2362 flying hours over approximately 40 years of active service. There are many long flights recorded. The registration was cancelled on 30 July 2014 as a result of a decision by the Museum to withdraw the glider from service. The exhibit represents the final development of the "Grunau" single seat type by Edmund Schneider Ltd in Australia. Viewed together with the Grunau Baby gliders in the ATO Collection (Two Grunau Baby 2, and a Grunau Baby 3A), the changes to this glider type over a 30 year period can be recognized. Single seat wooden sailplane with fabric covering. Fully enclosed cockpit. The aircraft is white with Linden Green on the wing tips, tailplane and underside of the fuselage and also on the central wing cover. Identification Plate in cockpit showing that glider is serial number 37 built by Edmund Schneider Ltd in 1959 australian gliding, glider, sailplane, grunau, grunau 3a, grunau 3b, grunau 4, schneider, waikerie gliding club, dubbo gliding club, adelaide soaring club, josef brabec

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 Slingsby T31 is a two seat training glider that came available in 1951. It is, in effect, a two seat version of the single seat Kirby Tutor. The T31 was marketed by Slingsby Sailplanes both as complete aircraft and kits of parts for assembly. The Australian Gliding Museum’s example (currently registered as VH-GDB) is one of five of this type to grace Australian skies. Three including GDB were assembled in Australia from kits supplied by Slingsby’s in England, the other two were delivered as completed airframes. To date only four remain of which two are airworthy. This aircraft began flying in at Caversham in Western Australia (the then home of the Gliding Club of Western Australia) in July 1956. It was badly damaged in a crash in June 1958. The wreckage was sent to Schneiders in Adelaide for repair. However, the Club decided against having the repairs done, opting instead to buy a new ES52 Kookaburra. After a couple of years, the wreck was purchased by a member of the Waikerie Gliding Club whereupon the glider was rebuilt with some modifications, including a more rounded and better streamlined fuselage nose. It returned to the air in October 1961 at Clare in South Australia. The ownership of VH-GDB passed through a number of clubs, including at Dubbo in New South Wales, Wimmera in Victoria and Pioneer Valley at Mackay in Queensland. Eventually, it came into the hands of Bill Riley of Tocumwal in New South Wales who held it in storage for many years. Riley donated the aircraft to the Museum. It has been restored to airworthiness and is flown at vintage glider rallies and on Museum open days. This exhibit is an excellent example of a Slingsby T31 Tandem Tutor, a type of glider that was used by a number of clubs in the 1950s and 1960s for dual training of pilots to the solo capability.The Slingsby T31b Tandem Tutor is an open cockpit, tandem, two-seater glider with high, pylon mounted two piece wing supported by double, wire braced, steel tube struts. The glider is fitted with a main wheel, rubber-block sprung, wooden nose skid and steel leaf sprung, brass shod tailskid. The basic controls of aileron, rudder and elevator are not supplemented with pitch trim. Wing lift spoilers and both aerotow and winch releases are fitted. The instrument panels in both cockpits are fitted with an airspeed indicator, cosim variometer and altimeter. This red and silver painted wood and fabric covered aircraft is in excellent condition having been restored to full airworthy status by the Australian Gliding Museum. SLINGSBY – T31b (nose – both sides) DB Australian Gliding Museum (rudder – both sides) It has been given Serial Number GFA/HB/12 and is registered as VH-GDBaustralian gliding, glider, sailplane, slingsby, tandem tutor, t31, gliding club of western australia, waikerie gliding club, wimmera soaring club, pioneer valley soaring club

The Schreder HP 14T is a variant of an all metal single seat sailplane designed by Richard Schreder of USA in the 1960s. The HP14T featured a ‘T’ tail in place of ‘V’ tail of the HP14V. The design was marketed to home builders in kit form. The Museum’s Schreder HP14T (VH-GIB) first flew on 31 August 1974. It has recorded 280 hours in the air from 239 launches to 28 January 1989, the date of its last flight. It is understood that VH-GIB was partly constructed in North America and completed in South Australia by C.G.M. Coxon. Ownership passed to the Georgeson Syndicate of Rockhamption, Queensland and later to Warren Mayfield of Victoria. Warren Mayfield donated the glider to the Museum in April 2002. All metal single seat glider sailplaneRegistration lettering on rudder and fuselage sidesaustralian gliding, glider, sailplane, schreder, coxon, georgeson, mayfield, slingsby, bache, waikerie gliding club

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 EP-1 "Spruce Goose" sailplane was designed and built by Ted Pascoe in 1955 as a smaller than average single seat sailplane that could be operated by two or three people. At times it was launched by auto-towing by Ted Pascoe and his wife without the aid of a third person at the wing tip. The glider exhibited good soaring capability and was used for some cross country flights. For instance, in 1956 Ted Pascoe succeeded in a 36 mile goal flight during which he attained a maximum height of 4500 feet. It was flown at the Mt Gambier Gliding Club from 1956 until about 1961. The Log Book shows that it was flown at Everard in 1961 and at Everard, Waikerie, Gawler and Keith in 1962. There is a gap in flying record for this aircraft from 1962 until 1967. From 1967 to 1972 it was flown regularly at various places in South Australia including Whitwarta, Stonefield, Renmark, and Gawler. For many years it was owned and flown by Mervyn Gill of the Balaklava Gliding Club.The EP-1 glider is an example of a successful Australian home built design from the 1950s. It was one of a small number of notable locally designed gliders of less than the usual 15 metre wing span from the 1950s and 1960s.Small, light weight, sailplane of wooden construction with fabric covering on wings (strutted), elevator and rudder. Instruments have been removed and control column is not in place. Serial Number GFA/HB/24 australian gliding, glider, sailplane, spruce goose, ep 1, ted pascoe, mt gambier gliding club, mervyn gill, balaklava gliding club

The Altair was built between January 1956 and November 1958 with first flight on 20 December 1958. After a few flights the cockpit was lengthened and the glider flown by Cliff Gurr and Ron Adair to complete their FAI Gold C badges. Cliff set an unofficial Australian record for an out and return flight (between Gawler and Renmark) of 230 miles (368 km) in 1961. The glider was flown by only Ron and Cliff until Mervyn Waghorn joined Ron to fly it in the National Championships at Waikerie in 1967. For a period of time the glider was left in the care of some members of the Geelong Gliding Club. Doug Vanstan of the Geelong Gliding Club fitted a new canopy and rebuilt the aileron bellcranks to improve their operation. Subsequently the Altair was flown in competitions and at vintage rallies until the mid 1980s. On 31 March 1987 Alan Patching of the Victorian Motorless Flight Group purchased the glider from Ron for the sum of one shilling and named the owners as himself, Doug Vanstan and Ian Patching. It has been stored at Bacchus Marsh airfield since then. The glider is the only 18 metre wing span machine to have been designed and built in Australia.The Altair glider is a single place 18 metre span cantilever wing glider constructed from spruce and aircraft plywood. The laminar flow wing is completely covered in plywood with a ply balsa sandwich for the leading edge and the airbrakes are unique being located in the trailing edge of the wings. All these features were done in an effort to retain laminar flow over the wing and achieve a high performance. The wings, empennage and top of the fuselage are painted white with the rest of the fuselage red. The word ‘Altair’ appears on both sides at the top of the fin.australian gliding, glider, sailplane, adair, gurr, waghorn, vanstan, rees, patching, altair, adelaide soaring club, gawler, geelong gliding club, vmfg, zechner

The Ka 8 was designed by Rudolf Kaiser in 1957 and built by Alexander Schleicher. It has been described as the single seat version of the Ka 7 Rhonadler. The Ka 8 proved popular with clubs in its role as a sailplane for early solo flying. Over 1100 were produced. The Museum’s example is a Ka 8B which is the second variant of the design, distinguishable by a larger blown Plexiglas canopy and improved ailerons. The particular glider was built by the RAAF Williamtown Gliding Club from kit supplied by Edmund Schneider Ltd of South Australia as agent for Alexander Schleicher. It was test flown on 8 July 1967. For a period from August 1994 it was owned by a syndicate at the Bendigo Gliding Club. The last entry in the log book is dated January 1995 at which time the glider had accumulated 1148 hours from 2303 flights. From 1967 to 1994, the glider was flown at numerous places including Williamtown, Bellata, Warkworth, Dubbo, Waikerie, Quirindi, Tamworth, Redding, Narromine, Leeton and Keepit. During 1994 and 1995 it was flown a small number of times at Bendigo. A notable flight recorded in the logbook is dated 31 October 1971 when W. Kenny reached 11,000 feet in height during a flight of 5 hours 10 minutes. The last owner prior to the transfer of the glider to the Australian Gliding Museum in 2015 was John Ashford of the Geelong Gliding Club. The glider carries Serial Number 8478-SH and appears to have been registered firstly as VH-GPA and secondly as VH-GMA. The last registration (VH-GMA) was cancelled in 2011.This Kaiser Ka8B sailplane, when fully restored, will be an airworthy example of a popular 1960s German club sailplane type. It is a rarity in Australia as only 4 of the type have been registered and flown here.Single seat sailplane made with a steel tube framed fuselage and wooden wings. A glass plastic moulding has been used to form the top of the fuselage forward of the cockpit. The structure is fabric covered.The glider serial number 8478-SH and the registration VH-GMA.australian gliding, glider, sailplane, schleicher, kaiser, ka 8, schneider, raaf williamtown gliding club, bendigo gliding club, geelong gliding club, ashford

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.