Service Awards
BILL IGGULDEN AWARD - Services to
Gliding as a Volunteer
Beverley Matthews (posthumous)
Beverley Matthews is posthumously awarded the Bill Iggulden award for Services to Gliding as a Volunteer.
Beverley passed away on 14 October 2025 after an extended illness. Despite having experienced ill health for a substantial part of her life, including MS, she has nevertheless made many contributions in a number of fields including gliding at local, regional and national levels.
Beverley’s experience in early electronics and computing in the 1960s was used in membership management, competition scoring and allied areas of record keeping. Berverley’s expertise was formally used to assist the GFA (now Gliding Australia) with decision making around early computing and technology. Beverley’s contributions in regional contest scoring earned her a SportSA Merit award in 2000.
In 1988, Beverley founded the South Australia Gliding History Trust, leading to the formation of the Monarto Sailplane Museum which remains operational today. Beverley’s preservation of documents and artefacts allowed various previously-used construction methods to be preserved that would have otherwise fallen into disuse.
RYAN AWARD - Services to Airworthiness
Ben Terrell
Ben contributed significantly to liaising with CASA during the recent groundings of the Piper PA-25 tow aircraft fleet. Ben developed the alternative testing procedure to allow the Eddy Current Inspection to be carried out on the variant of PA-25 wings typically found in Australia. Ben is a professional aeronautical engineer and generously made his time and expertise available during this process. Without his effort, the Beverley Soaring Society and many other gliding clubs around Australia would have been grounded for a longer period following the initial grounding and associated delays.
Furthermore, Ben remains on the Gliding Australia PA-25 working group, which continues to assess strategies and opportunities to aid the airworthiness of the gliding fleet into the future.
JR MULLER AWARD - Services to
Promotion and Marketing
Anne Elliott
Anne Elliott’s contribution to Promotion and Marketing has resulted in a consistent, long-standing and altruistic promotion of the sport through social media. Anne is an administrator of multiple pages on Facebook devoted to gliding, where she posts gliding news and historical pieces to viewers on a daily basis. Viewers of Anne’s posts extend past Gliding Australia members, to members of the international gliding community and non-gliding people alike. This content builds the external profile of Gliding Australia within the wider community.
Anne’s ongoing and dedicated contribution to the continuation of our sport is appreciated by the Gliding Australia community. We hope that members will continue to value her efforts for many years to come.
Hoinville Award - Services to Operations
Justin Fitzgerald
Justin Fitzgerald has provided substantial support to gliding in the AAFC over the past two or more years that has benefited gliding operations for youth in NSW, Queensland and South Australia.
His influence and input into Air Force Cadets gliding policy, activities and support has been significant in both the operations and soaring development areas. Justin Fitzgerald has worked
with the AAFC and Gliding Australia to progress the instructor pipeline for GTS through the facilitation of the inaugural cross-country capability and a national cross-country course being organised for the end of the year at Temora. This new capability has been supported by his vision and his efforts to purchase new equipment, such as Oudie and oxygen systems, that is now being introduced into the fleet.
Justin Fitzgerald has brought his considerable gliding experience from the UK and Australia to the AAFC, assisting with both operational and safety elements through introduction of our Safety Supervision training and passing on his skills and experience to our gliding students.
Wally Wallington Award - Services to
the Sport of Gliding
Nick Gilbert
Nick Gilbert is recognised for the work he has put into the organisation and administration of gliding competitions over the previous decade and beyond. In addition, Nick has overseen the development of various gliding technologies and platforms that have assisted in advancing and modernising the sport.
Nick developed his administrative skills in the organisation and delivery of JoeyGlide events in the 2000s. In the late 2010s, with the help of a team of dedicated volunteers, Nick developed and delivered the SkyRace Grand Prix as an accessible form of competition for aging gliders and their owners.
More recently, Nick has overseen the development of tracking technologies, which developed the external profile of Gliding Australia for several years. Nick is now in the process of delivering the 2025/2026 Australian Multiclass Nationals, which have so far seen a significant increase in entries with respect to recent trends. The Board of Gliding Australia identifies Nick Gilbert for his Services to the Sport of Gliding by implementing his skills and experience to further the national competition scene and, if possible, return it to a state of health.
Anthony Smith
ASAC Australian Airs Sports Recognition Award
Anthony Smith
Anthony Smith is a Gliding Australia (GAus) member, based in Adelaide SA, who has made outstanding contributions to the advancement of the sport of gliding and standards of aviation and airworthiness over many years.
In the last few years he has made particularly noteworthy contributions to the resolution of urgent airworthiness issues affecting light aircraft involved in glider towing operations, strengthening linkages with overseas airworthiness and regulatory authorities. He has driven many improvements and changes in airworthiness training, standards and processes, manuals and guidance, materially improving airworthiness safety and associated operations risks. He has led the GAus executive working group team in developing the Exposition, Manuals of Standard Procedures and supporting manuals, forming GAus successful application to CASA for approval as a Part 149 Approved Self-Administering Aviation Organisation (ASAO).
Anthony Smith has established a reputation as a superb airworthiness professional in RAAF and contractor environments, particularly in support of Maritime reconnaissance aircraft capabilities. He has translated those insights and practices into more rigorous airworthiness systems, practices and training in Gliding Australia. He has been the Regional Manager Airworthiness for SA, the Deputy Chair of Airworthiness Department and more recently the Chair of Airworthiness Panel in the modernised GAus organisation.
Anthony has driven major improvements in formal airworthiness training systems and was instrumental in our recent CASA approval in managing glider weight and balance systems and training. He is now serving in support of GAus in addressing changes in airworthiness directives, service bulletins, test and maintenance requirements for PA-25 Pawnee glider towplanes affected by South American accidents and airworthiness directives. Overseas gliding and civil aviation authorities are also benefiting from his superb leadership of complex airworthiness issues and fatigue analyses.
Anthony’s contributions to airworthiness and air sports are stellar examples of professionalism, initiative and dedication, benefiting gliding and the broader aviation industry. I commend him highly.
Steve Pegler
Chair of the Board
Gliding Australia
Sporting trophies
WALLY WOODS TROPHY
Longest flight 2024-25
Tomas Suchanek
1178km
BOB IRVINE TROPHY
Flight with Highest WeGlide points 2024-25
Tomas Suchanek
1239 points 1108km
MARTIN WARNER TROPHY
Greatest gain of height 2024-25
Rick Agnew and Josh Davis
DG 1001M
20,318ft
ROGER WOODS TROPHY
Best place by an Australian at
a World Championships
2024-25
Sophie Curio
Womens WGC 2025
4th place
RAeS SHIELD
Highest speed by an Australian at
World Club Class 2024-25
James Nugent
WGC Club Class 2025
120.67 kph
INGO RENNER CUP
Best 3 flights 2024-25 Summer
Tomas Suchanek
Narromine Gliding Club
4208 points
INGO RENNER CUP
Best 3 flights 2024-25 Wiinter
Chris Woolley
Kingaroy Soaring Club
1761 points
WEGLIDE AUSTRALIAN LEAGUE
Accumulated points from a club,
weekend flights
Gliding Club of Victoria
