Shield is the surname of the man who designed and built the aircraft in Yorkshire - George Shield, and Xyla is the Greek word for wood - which is the principal constituent of its airframe. The design is PFA approved and took George Shield 10 years to build.

The aircraft first flew in 1971 at Helmswell. In 1980, after several years flying, the Xyla suffered an accident that led to it being grounded and re-sold. The new owner did not finish restorations and it finished up in the roof of a car spray shop. The aircraft was then brought by Ken Snell in 1997, and it has been painstakingly restored, enabling it to fly in to the PFA Rally in 1999. The restoration took 1500 hours of work, and it was given an eye-catching yellow paint scheme, with polished metal cowlings, to replace the overall black scheme previously worn. The 100 h.p. Continental engine originally drove a three-bladed propeller, but since then a two bladed has been fitted.

In 1999, after the restoration was complete, the cover of the Popular Flying magazine was graced once more by the Xyla (see right).

The aircraft has been flown to venues like the PFA Rally and the Great Vintage Flying Weekend, as well as for pleasure over the last few years.