2-839-682 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Sailplane used by Scotty McCray for aerobatics, silver, red and blue; ca. 1960. Immediately after World War II ended, Earnest Schweizer designed the SGU 2-22EK. Earnest and his brothers, Paul and William, hoped to produce and sell an inexpensive, easy-to-fly, two-seat training glider built from aluminum that could operate from small airfields. The Schweizer Aircraft Corporation built 257 examples of the 2-22 from 1946 to 1967. Thousands of people acquired the skill to fly motorless aircraft at the controls of the 2-22 and many of these airplanes remain active in 2003. Byron G. "Scotty" McCray flew this Schweizer 2-22EK from 1966 to 1973 at airshows in the United States, Canada, and the Bahamas. His routine began at about 760-912 m (2,500-3,000 ft). After releasing from the tow airplane, McCray looped, rolled, and spun the 2-22 down to a silent landing. He synchronized his maneuvers to the theme music from the Hollywood film Born Free while audiences heard the melody booming through the airshow public address system.