THE GREAT ADVENTURE

Romania to Australia by Motorglider

  Bill Schoon's daughter Lyn Whimpey has provided the following photo of Bill (deceased) who was a foundation member of the Caboolture Gliding Club and its predecessor the Brisbane Valley Gliding Club. Bill was a tuggie as well as an instructor and was CFI in 1982 and 1983. He was also honoured as a Life Member of the Caboolture Gliding Club. 

Lyn has also provided a copy of an article written by her father about his epic flight from Romania to Australia in three IS-28M2 Motorgliders in May 1980 with "our" Bert Persson and Bill Ryan (founder of Riley Aeronautics and the Sportavia Soaring Centre at Tocumwal).

Why did they do it? ...  in Bill Schoon's words ... "Bill Riley, the importer of these machines, had been quoted $14,000 as the shipping cost for three motor gliders - so why not fly them out ourselves? By doing so we could have a working holiday, see many interesting sights, and prove the reliability of this type of aircraft".

ROMANIA to AUSTRALIA by MOTOR GLIDER ... by Bill Schoon

(please click on the above hyperlink to view the "Free Flight" article in PDF format)

  The Motor Lark IS-28M2 was a two-seater (side-by-side) motorglider developed from the two-seater (tandem) IS-28M1. The rear fuselage, tailplane and wings are similar to the IS-28B2 glider. Powered by a Limbach engine driving an adjustable pitch Hoffman fully-feathering propeller, it first flew in 1976.

Bill Riley, who was the importer of IS-28's had also been the importer of Blaniks. Interesting to contemplate therefore just how many Australian glider pilots would have done at least some of their training in a two-seater club aircraft that was imported by Bill Riley!