Club History

A group of enthusiasts with a penchant for motorless flight obtained permission from the Taupo Borough Council to lease the field, and on 19th September 1967 the Taupo Gliding Club was formed with the purchase of a Slingsby T31, ZK-GAC. This was quickly followed by the purchase of a single-seater T30B Prefect, ZK-GAB.

A Piper Club was hired from Peter Matich at 15cents per minute for aerotowing the gliders. Winch and auto launching were also experimented with in those days. The auto launches were provided by an old Super Snipe driving towards the glider with the rope running through a pulley at one end of the field with glider at the opposite end.

Mr Carl Perham of Whakatane, the first club instructor, was flown to and from Taupo each weekend by Mr Bob Maisey. Lou Woltman gained his instructors certificate and became the first Taupo based instructor, followed by Vern Anderson, Kevin Roberts, John Pitkethley and Bruce Bates.

With the passing of the winch and Super Snipe, Vern Anderson purchased an Auster ZK-AYO to provide tows. This was followed by a Piper Cub ZK-BPA. The first towplane owned by the Club was an ex top-dressing Piper Pawnee 150 registered ZK-BOU, purchased in 1970, The hopper was removed, a tow hook fitted and did the job for seventeen years. With the unfortunate demise of the Prefect, a single-seater Schleicher Ka6CR,GFH was purchased from Taupo Syndicate in January 1969. In July 1973 the T31 was replaced by a Two-seater Rhonlerche K4, GCJ purchased from John Roake.

A more modern two-seater was purchased in April 1982, a Schleicher K7GLQ and the pride of the fleet is a Polish Fibreglass Standard Jantar, GML, a single-seater purchased for $27,500 in September 1984.