Best Flights
Included here is a list of flights that are, for our club, significant in that they chart the progress of the club. These flights in their own way, lifted the bar, so that pilots realised that these things could be done and that they too, could achieve likewise. And in Taranaki too.
Comments and suggestions are welcome.
1968. Bob Struthers/Colin Gould - silver badgefive hours duration at
Whitemans Valley, Upper Hutt. Ridge flying.
1969. Bob Struthers silver distance attempt - Tahora/Stratford. Landed
near the Marco School. Flight began from Bob Shewry's farm,
Moki Road, Tahora.
Harry Smith/Peter Miller/Bob Struthers/Clive Sherman, all get
their silver height badges at New Plymouth. Best height 10600ft.
Southwest wave.
Bob Struthers completes his silver badge with a distance flight of
50km, Matamata/Te Kuiti.
1970. Harry Smith - Gold height at German Hill. Got to 16000ft.
1971. Bob Struthers - New Plymouth to Eltham, 300km attempt.
1976. Bob Struthers - 300km at Gawler, South Australia.
1984. Bob Struthers - Gold Distance attempt - German Hill/Vinegar Hill
return. Landed at Bonny Glen.
1987. Bob Struthers/Louis Trichard - Gold Distance/Diamond Goal and
Diamond Distance flights at Narromime, New South Wales.
1988. Bob Struthers - Diamond Height Gain at German Hill. The first
TGC pilot to be awarded all three Diamonds.
1970. Bob Struthers - 750km attempt at Benalla, Victoria. Landed in
NSW, just short of the Murray river having done 500km.
1992. Chris Griffin soars to 28000ft at German Hill.
2009. Tim Hardwick-Smith covers the Silver Distance of 50km, by
using remote start/finish points of Egmont National Park
boundary/Whangamomona. The first Silver Distance done
Taranaki.