Flying Pantechnicons: Airborne Warfare and the Story of the Assault Glider Trust

In the summer of 2000, the Midlands Branch of the Glider Pilot Regiment identified a significant gap in the proud heritage of British aviation. Despite numerous preserved aircraft assemblages both in the United Kingdom and abroad, the fact remained that there was no complete surviving example of a publicly accessible Airspeed Horsa assault glider to be found anywhere in the world. The Assault Glider Trust was formed in order to put the situation straight once and, very much, for all.

Between 2001 and 2014, a skilled team of aviation enthusiasts worked tirelessly on the manufacture, conservation, and restoration of not only the Airspeed Horsa but a wider collection of aircraft in honor of all those associated with airborne forces during The Second World War. These included an American WACO CG-4A 'Hadrian', C-47 Dakota and a DH82a Tiger Moth.

Flying Pantechnicons is a fascinating miscellany charting the remarkable story of The Assault Glider Trust and the determination of an entirely charitable voluntary organization in achieving a most ambitious aviation project. The book follows their incredible journey from original idea through acquisition, restoration, and the final challenge of finding permanent locations for public display and interpretation.

The development of British Airborne Forces and their military application is contextualized alongside the engineering challenges faced in the physical construction of historic airframes. Consequently, this book provides a valuable contribution to both historical interpretation and the machinations of large-scale object conservation making it ideal for aviation enthusiasts and heritage professionals alike.