Wally Scott

Who was Wally Scott?

Wallace Aiken Scott was an American aviator and author, a holder of several international sailplane records, and a multi-time recipient of the Lewin B. Barringer trophy awarded for the longest, free-distance, sailplane flight of each year made in the United States. Over 36 years Wallace Wally Scott increased the distance flown in a sailplane.

Scott became a pioneer of free-distance, straight-out, soaring flight and won 4 Fédération Aéronautique Internationale-certified, world soaring records, 20 Lewin B. Barringer Trophies, and numerous other awards and honors, including induction into the Soaring Hall of Fame in 1965.

Scott flew various sailplanes more than 300,000 miles while twice winning the transcontinental Smirnoff Sailplane Derby race, the longest sailplane race in the world. On July 26, 1970, he and Ben Greene co-set the world distance record of 716.95 miles, both flying ASW-12 sailplanes.