Annually a group of ex-Military Vehicle Collectors gather at Ball Park Caravan Park in Corowa on the beautiful Murray River to display their lovingly restored military vehicles participate in a vehicle display and a swap meet at the Corowa Showgrounds, go to local schools and places of interest both in Corowa and the surrounding areas. The event attracts collectors from throughout Australia and the World. There are clubs in each state and the organising association is Khaki Vehicle Enthusiasts Incorporated. March 2025 represents the 45th year of the gathering at Corowa. The theme is Year of the Unimog and Mack. We also encourage ex-military vehicle owners with other makes and models of vehicles to attend the event where they can exchange information and parts. The Theme for 2026 it will be Year of the 6X6 and in 2027 Year of the Utility.
The event was initially organised by Ian Grieve [Qld] and Alan Newton [SA] and was for Amphibious Jeeps [Ford Model G.P.A. ¼ -Ton 4X4 Amphibian] but with so much interest amongst military vehicle enthusiasts it became a large-scale gathering not only with GPA’s but also other historic military vehicles.
People have asked “Why was Corowa chosen as the venue of this event?” Corowa, on the Murray River, just West of Albury is a fairly central location. It has fresh water, with easy river access and is a historic town. The collectors enjoy the wrecking yards and disposal stores in Albury and Wodonga. There are a variety of shops, wineries and antique shops to make this a family orientated event. The townsfolk of Corowa have always welcomed our presence and we look forward to returning each year to enjoy their hospitality and support. The Federation Council, Club Corowa and the IGA were sponsors of the 44th Annual Corowa Swim-In and Military Vehicle Gathering.
Through the week the vehicles go on trips to nearby towns. We encourage visits to schools and aged care facilities. The vehicles will visit the Club Corowa for a Veterans & Vehicles Reunited event on Thursday 13th March. All veterans from the local community are welcome to attend.
On Saturday 15th March there will be a parade down Sanger St to the Corowa Showgrounds. There will be a large military vehicle display at the Corowa Showgrounds along with Swap Meet. In the evening we will hold a presentation evening commencing at 8pm.
The majority of vehicles attending our event are of World War 2 vintage. They include many Jeeps, Blitz’s, Dodge Weapons Carriers, Studebakers, GMC trucks, White Scout Cars, Chev trucks, Ford trucks, Bren Gun Carriers, Harley Davidson motorcycles, Amphibious Jeeps, DUKW’s and many more. The event also attracts members with post-WW2 vehicles including Land Rovers, Saracen Armoured Cars, Ferret Scout Cars, HUMVEE [Hummer], ACCO Internationals and many others.
In 1999 we achieved recognition by the Guinness Book of World Records for “the largest gathering of Ford GPA amphibious vehicles since the Second World War”. This number being 16 including the famous Amphibious Jeep “Half-Safe” which circumnavigated the world during the 1950’s and had been donated to the Guildford Grammar School in Perth. In March 2002 we again achieved recognition by the Guinness Book of World Records for “the greatest gathering of privately owned Ford and Chev Blitz trucks since 1945”.
In the following years, 2003 onward, the themes included:
2003 Year of the Studebaker
2004 Year of the Dodge
2005 Year of the WW2 Pattern Carriers, we had 21 Carriers take part.
2006 Year of the Armoured Car
2007 Year of the Cycle and Year of the Staff Car
2008 Year of the Tracked Vehicle, with tanks parading though Corowa, a first!
2009 Year of the Amphibian and Year of the Blitz 2 (30th year of the Swim-In)
2010 Year of the Jeep, a record year for vehicles, 266 took part including 180 Jeeps.
2011 Year of the British & European Vehicles, with 190 vehicles displayed.
2012 Year of the 6x6, 165 vehicles displayed including 22 6x6 trucks.
The event had now become the largest gathering of ex-military vehicles in the Southern Hemisphere.
2013 Year of the Trailed Equipment and Armoured Vehicle
2014 Year of WW1 and Year of the Ford
2015 Year of the General Motors and Year of the Emergency Vehicle
2016 Year of the Chrysler and Year of the Tank
2017 Year of the Carrier and Year of the International
2018 Year of the Land Rover and the largest gathering of military vehicles in the Southern Hemisphere which was 270 with 111 being Land Rovers.
2019 Year of the Amphibian and Prototype
2020 Year of the Motorcycle
In 2021 we postponed the 42nd annual gathering due to COVID-19
In 2022 Year of the Jeep and Year of the RAAF.
In 2023 Year of the Heavy Metal and Military Kit
In 2024 Year of the Blitz
There is a website where people can obtain information and see pictures of past and future events.
See us also on Facebook – corowaswimin
For further information or registration phone:
Jan Thompson on 0412 078096 or Email: kveinc@optusnet.com.au
Our event was awarded Community Event of the Year as part of the Federation Council Australia Day Awards in January 2018 and January 2019.
If there are any local people who would like to help with our Site Office which is open from 8am until 6pm on Monday to Friday and a few hours on Saturday morning at the Corowa Showgrounds please contact Jan Thompson on 0412078096 or email: jan.thompson1@optusnet.com.au
