Globe Swift

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_goose_

Filing Flight Plan
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Dec 27, 2025
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_goose_
Anybody heard of a Globe Swift???
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If so, what are your thoughts/opinions (good and bad) about them?
 
My dad had a 145hp one back in the late 70's. I put over 100hrs on it building time and enjoying it very much. His did not have a steerable tailwheel and kept you on your toes.
 
Great airplanes, faster but somewhat more demanding than other 2-seaters of the era. As @AvNavCom pointed out, all the issues you have with an antique. For sheer practicality, a modern experimental like an RV is a more logical choice (not that logic applies when you really want a particular airplane).
 
Heard of them? Yes. Seen one? No. If you're interested in how they fly, Budd Davisson has a flight review here.

They were produced with Continental C-85, C-125, and C-145 engines, and I have to think that finding parts is a challenge.
 
There used to be several based at our airport, don’t know if they’re still around. My take is they are an elegant and unique airplane, being a conventional retract and they’re efficient and speedy given the horsepower.

They appear to be short coupled, so I think you’d have to be on your game.
 
I almost bought a Swift the last time I was in the market for an airplane. They are competent cross country machines (speed-wise) and they are able to perform gentlemen's aerobatics. That was a nice combination for my wish list, but their useful load is only 600 pounds and they have essentially no baggage space. Many Swifts have added really cool modifications, but those mods often lower the useful load to as little as 450 lbs. When I was in the market for a plane, I still had kids in college and a plane that could help transport them and their gear to school each fall became more important than the ability to do an occasional barrel roll. I wound up buying a Maule. It is slow, but I have a 1,015 lb. useful load and the barn doors on the side of the plane let me load bicycles, camping gear or other baggage easily. The back seat comes out by just pulling a couple of fast pins - no bolts to undo. If local flying and light acro are your thing, a Swift can be a great option. If you want to go places and bring a friend and a bit of baggage, keep shopping.

Packed-Maule.jpeg
 
Dana said:
Great airplanes, faster but somewhat more demanding than other 2-seaters of the era. As @AvNavCom pointed out, all the issues you have with an antique. For sheer practicality, a modern experimental like an RV is a more logical choice (not that logic applies when you really want a particular airplane).
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This. They are great airplanes, but from a utility standpoint, an RV-6 will be faster, easier to maintain, and carry more farther.

From the standpoint of aesthetics and exuding class, they beat the RV series hands down.
 
Bill said:
Is it easier to learn to land an RV-6 vs the Swift?
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I've never flown a Swift, but they are supposedly more challenging than the RV series.
 
I fell in love (or lust, anyway) with the Swift when someone did an air show act at Ishkosh in one back in the ‘70s. It made the short list when I was buying my first airplane, but I decided my first airplane wouldn’t have retractable gear or controllable prop, which eliminated everything but the Maule on my short list. :lol:

Anybody remember who flew a Swift in airshows?
 
Also, a guy I worked for had a Swift back in the ‘50s. He knew what time the North Central DC-3 passed over his farm on the way to Minneapolis, so he’d occasionally climb under to altitude so that he could dive down and pass them. :rofl:
 
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FormerHangie said:
Heard of them? Yes. Seen one? No. If you're interested in how they fly, Budd Davisson has a flight review here.

They were produced with Continental C-85, C-125, and C-145 engines, and I have to think that finding parts is a challenge.
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They weren't actually produced with the 145, just the 85 and 125. The 85hp GC-1A was supposedly very underpowered, which led to the 125hp GC-1B which was only a little underpowered (or might have been fine, with late-1940s-sized people on board). But, these days the conventional wisdom is that 145hp is the sweet spot for them, and there are a lot of 160hp as well as 180-210hp "Super Swifts".

There are a LOT of modifications for them: Canopies to replace the windows and "lid", sticks to replace the yokes, 152-style seats on rails to replace the original fixed ones, extended fuel tanks, mods to close the "holes" in the wings, P-51 gear doors, retractable tailwheels, gross weight increases, etc... Supposedly it's the most-modified certified airplane, and there are no two alike any more.

There's a Swift forum, a Swift group on Facebook, and Swift gatherings.

Also, in contrast to what was written above, support isn't as big of an issue as you'd think with a plane that hasn't been manufactured since 1952. The Swift Museum Foundation owns the type certificate and all the tooling for the Swift, and theoretically could build a brand new Swift today. So, as I understand it, if they run out of spares of something they can make brand-new parts. It's definitely not an orphan.

www.flyingmag.com

Globe Swift Is More Than an Aircraft—It’s a Community

Type club for the unique two-seat Globe Swift monoplane offers a strong support network.
www.flyingmag.com www.flyingmag.com

MauleSkinner said:
I fell in love (or lust, anyway) with the Swift when someone did an air show act at Ishkosh in one back in the ‘70s. It made the short list when I was buying my first airplane, but I decided my first airplane wouldn’t have retractable gear or controllable prop, which eliminated everything but the Maule on my short list. :lol:

Anybody remember who flew a Swift in airshows?
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Corkey Fornof did the shows with the Swift/LoPresti Fury. It was yellow and said WHEE! on the bottom of the wing. Not sure who did older airshows with one.
 
kyleb said:
At some point (early 2000's?), there was a Swift formation aerobatic team.
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Oh yeah! Three or four of them, IIRC. They had something painted on the bottom of their wings too, I wish I could remember what!
 
flyingcheesehead said:
So, as I understand it, if they run out of spares of something they can make brand-new parts. It's definitely not an orphan.
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The engines are orphans. Those old Continentals have been out of production for a very long time. The C-125 was last produced in 1952. The C-145 became the O-300 and Rolls-Royce in England produced some versions of it until 2004. I don't think anyone is producing cams or cranks for them.
 
Dan Thomas said:
The engines are orphans. Those old Continentals have been out of production for a very long time. The C-125 was last produced in 1952. The C-145 became the O-300 and Rolls-Royce in England produced some versions of it until 2004. I don't think anyone is producing cams or cranks for them.
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When it comes to the Swift, there are STCs for hanging dang near any engine you want on them up to 210hp (there was an STC for a 220 or 225hp one that's also out of production). I've seen Swifts for sale that were 85, 125, 140, 145, 150, 160, 180, 200, and 210hp, both Lyc and Conti.
 
flyingcheesehead said:
When it comes to the Swift, there are STCs for hanging dang near any engine you want on them up to 210hp (there was an STC for a 220 or 225hp one that's also out of production). I've seen Swifts for sale that were 85, 125, 140, 145, 150, 160, 180, 200, and 210hp, both Lyc and Conti.
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Yes, but STCs are not cheap, and neither are the engines. The engine mount will need to be changed, too. And the exhaust system. And the propeller. Maybe cowling mods. So a Swift that some guy buys for $20K because it's an affordable airplane, suddenly becomes an $80K+ airplane after he STCs an O-320 into it, for example.

I did an STC on a Cessna 180, replacing the O-470 with an Air Plains IO-550. With the labor, I think the bill to the customer hit $150K (Canadian). It was an enormous amount of work.
 
Dan Thomas said:
I did an STC on a Cessna 180, replacing the O-470 with an Air Plains IO-550. With the labor, I think the bill to the customer hit $150K (Canadian). It was an enormous amount of work.
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How much to add a couple turbines to a 1-26? (Asking for a friend.)
 
Guy with the hangar across from mine has one. I’m not sure what he’s got in it now, but I think he said he has an O-320 also. I know there’s a spare cowl, engine mount, and some other stuff in his hangar. Cool looking plane.
 
Dan Thomas said:
Yes, but STCs are not cheap, and neither are the engines. The engine mount will need to be changed, too. And the exhaust system. And the propeller. Maybe cowling mods. So a Swift that some guy buys for $20K because it's an affordable airplane, suddenly becomes an $80K+ airplane after he STCs an O-320 into it, for example.
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Granted... But the Swift Museum Foundation owns O-300 and O-360 STCs and while I'm sure they charge a fee, it's also pretty reasonable - Maybe $500-$1K IIRC. And if you upgrade it to an O-360 you'll likely be significantly increasing your resale value as well.
 
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