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12 April 2026

GAF Jindivik Mk 103B, A92-708 NAHR – Awaiting Classification

What is it visitors first see at the museum entrance when they arrive? The brightly coloured GAF Jindivik reusable radio-controlled target drone, which arrived at the museum in summer 2021. As well as fitting in with the themed training display at the museum, it also augmented the Hangar 2 UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) display. This display was established as a collaborative exercise with the Institute of Engineering and Surveying and Space Geodesy (IESSG) at the University of Nottingham and the RAF Museum, Hendon. By Jan McGeachie.

The GAF Jindivik was developed for use in missile testing and was originally produced by the Australian Government Aircraft Factories (GAF), as part of a joint development with the UK Government. This development programme was aimed specifically for their use at Woomera, Australia and Aberporth, North West Wales.

The original production specification dated back to the late 1940s and it required an aircraft capable of a 15-minute sortie at 12,000 metres (40,000 feet). The first flight of the Jindivik Mk.1 took place in August 1952. The name Jindivik owes its origins to an Aboriginal Australian word meaning "the hunted one".

It is believed that more than 500 were built, but with as few as 20 surviving. The Jindivik was operated by taking off on a trolley and landing on a retractable skid; being used ostensibly by the Royal Australian Air Force, Royal Navy and RAF; some were also operated by Sweden and the US Navy.

Some assembly work was undertaken by Fairey Aviation in Hayes, and taken to the Aberporth Test Range. Jindiviks received their control signals via radio transmission from their pair of ground controllers.

Jindivik, A92-708 was a Mk 103B variant, which crash landed on its 125th flight on the 20th August 1990. On this flight it was being used for trials in the run up to the first Gulf War, Iraq 1991, ‘Operation Granby’. After being stored at RAF Llanbedr, Gwynedd for a number of years, the airframe was acquired by the Bristol Aero Collection in 1997 and was moved to their then site at Kemble.

The Jindivik had been in store at Aerospace Bristol’s site at Patchway, Bristol. The delivery of the exhibit was timed to take place after the easing of some Covid-19 guidelines across England in 2021.

As an Accredited Museum, the trustees of Newark Air Museum were able to facilitate the transfer of this exhibit in quite a simple manner. The trustees appreciate the assistance provided by Stefanie Vincent AMA, Collections Manager at Aerospace Bristol throughout the acquisition process. A92-708 is currently slated for some restoration work during the coming months.

Photo credit: Jan McGeachie

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