The structural and chief designer is Attie Jonker, while the airfoil and main aerodynamic features were developed by Johan Bosman in co-operation with the Delft University of Technology.

Series production then started and up to July 2012 about 34 had been produced[2] Attie Jonker won the 18 metre class South African National Championship in 2008 with a JS-1 Revelation.

Theoretical performance gives a claimed best glide of around 1:60 and, with the maximum wing loading of 58.7 kg/m2 and the polar remaining flat at high cruise speeds, the manufacturers state that it is competitive at the highest level with other Open Class gliders.

The results (2nd, 3rd and three other places in the top ten in the 2014 World Gliding Championships Open Class[Notes 1]) supports this assertion.

[3] The JS1-C is certificated in Europe by M&D Flugzeugbau as the JS-MD Single, with a retractable MD-TJ42 turbojet engine mounted behind the cockpit.