The Gore Aero Club will celebrate its 50th anniversary on August 5 and 6, with past and present members coming from across the country, as far north as Auckland.
Club president John Ibbotson said some guests would fly in for the social evening at the clubrooms on Friday, August 5. This would be followed by a chance to share stories at a dinner the following night at the Gore racecourse.
Mr Ibbotson said the aim of the dinner was to allow people to catch up and "share as many memories as possible".
The club has about 60 members in Southland and West Otago, with some members driving from Queenstown to hire aircraft for "a few days".
Last year, the club's name changed from the Southern Districts Aero Club to the Gore Aero Club to give it "local identity", he said.
The group, which operates from the Gore airfield, owns two aircraft, a Rans S-6 Coyote and a Cessna 172, allowing it to offer two types of licences, general aircraft and microlight.
The Southern Districts Aero Club was formed in 1961 from the Gore Flight of the Southland Aero Club and was based at McNab, with outfields at Balfour, Roxburgh and Heriot. Roy Buchanan was the first president. Roy Cunningham was club captain, and there were about 90 members.
The group moved to its present site at the airfield in Charlton, south of Gore, in 1963.
Membership peaked in 1967-68, at 201 members and eight aircraft.
The club trained pilots across a large area in Southland, South Otago, West Otago, Central Otago and the Lakes District. It also set up the Wanaka-based Aspiring Air in the early 1970s.
Mr Ibbotson urged anyone still wanting to register for the celebrations to contact him as soon as possible.
"The more, the merrier - but don't wait until the last minute."
