#CU266 661 VGS Viking T1 print
Description
Squadron Prints Lithograph No. CU266 - Viking T1, ZE602 'XB", 661 Volunteer Gliding Squadron, RAF Kirknewton.
Basic glider training was first started in 1939 when some cadets were given training at Dunstable Downs. By 1943, gliding was part of the official cadet training and by December 1945, some 84 schools were in existence. With a decline in the Air Cadet Organisation after World War II, the number of Gliding Schools dropped to 27, and were subsequently equipped with Slingsby Sedbergh and Cadet Mark III aircraft. The Venture Motor Glider entered service in 1978 and eventually equipped 11 Schools but a major re-equipment appraisal took place in 1983, when the Air Cadet Gliding Organisation received a number of new types for trial. The Grob 103 Viking was selected and 100 purchased, the first of which was flown at the Air Cadet Central Gliding School at Syerston on 5 October 1984. This type now forms the backbone of the Air Cadets glider training and currently equips 10 Gliding Squadrons throughout the country. Its good soaring and gliding performance allows it to participate in most aspects of advanced gliding training and its rugged construction gives for save gliding and easy maintenance.