MIKE GAGG – “IL EST PARTI VERS UN MONDE MEILLEUR”
It’s with sadness that we bid Mike Gagg a final farewell. Mike was a long-time member of the Wrekin Gliding Club, a senior club instructor and also engineering member.
Mike, being the positive character he was, his enthusiasm in fettling winches, vehicles and of course his passion for refurbishing and maintaining the club fleet was infectious. He was a highly skilled and knowledgeable repairer of wooden gliders and would spend hours in the club workshop, invariably hidden in a cloud of pipe smoke.
He was a first class instructor passing on his knowledge to the younger members of the club especially those on RAF apprentice training at RAF Cosford.
During the 1980s and 90s he owned and flew a vintage Olympia 2b allowing all club members to fly this delightful glider which is now exhibited in the national gliding museum at Lasham. He had a passion for all wooden gliders, his club aircraft of choice being both the K13 and K18..
During the summer Mike and his wife Margaret would divide their time between the Wrekin Gliding Club and Poitiers Gliding Club in France where he owned his second home. Fluent in French, Mike became a senior French gliding instructor and also a microlite pilot. And when he wasn’t gliding he could often be found flying a TMG at Motorglide in Bicester.
He was an accomplished aeromodeller and on his last visit to Shawbury, after carrying out some maintenance tasks on a syndicate glider (he was also a senior BGA inspector), he flew some of his amazing delicate rubber powered microfilm aeroplanes in the hangar.
In the past three years his health deteriorated, however, he would still manage to make the long journey to Shawbury just to enjoy a flight with one of his many mates at the club. But he never really lost his real love of flying with his friends at Cosford
Mike was a true aviation enthusiast with flying in his blood. Our thoughts go out to Margaret and his family.
Adieu, mon cher ami. Repose en paix