Shortfinals's Blog

By: shortfinals

Dec 29 2011

Tags: Aviation, England, London, Royal Air Force, RAF, De Havilland, Second World War, Museums, Australia, WW2, aircraft, Germany, warbird, DSO, mosquito, museum, USA, Czechoslovakia, Great Britain, Rolls-Royce, Berlin, Canada, Europe, English Electric, New Zealand, fighter, Hertfordshire, BBMF, Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, USAAF, Rolls-Royce Merlin, FRAeS, British Aerospace, Bomber Command, flight test programme, No 616 Squadron, Fighter Command, RAF Coastal Command, RAF Finningley, flight status, Air Ministry, bomber, photo-reconnaissance, night fighter, Doncaster, RAF's Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, English Electric Canberra, Canberra, de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito, MC, photo-reconnaissance version, RAuxAF, Royal Air Force Museum, Hendon, 'Milestones of Flight' Gallery, P-51 aircraft, DH.98, TT.35, B.35, Prague, anti-shipping strikes, fighter-bomber, day intruder, 4000 lb bomb, RR299, Barton, 1996, Salisbury Hall, engine feathered, 'Peoples Mosquito', Air Chief Marshal Sir Wilfred Rhodes Freeman, 'Freeman's Folly', Specification B.1/40, without defensive armament, gun turrets, Air Member for Research and Development, Baronet, KGCB, prototype Mosquito, W4050, built in secrecy, 25th November 1940, balsa/plywood 'sandwich' construction, strategic metal resources, a gathering of senior officers, near-400 mph speed, extreme manoeuverability for a twin, upward rolls, fastest warplane Europe, fastest warplane in Europe, fastest bomber in RAF service, superb night-fighter, low-level attack aircraft, night bomber, photo-reconnaisance units, enormous range, opposing German fighters, Mossie, UK subcontractors, wood-working, furniture trades, Mosquito night-fighters, NF.30, defend Great Britain, new jet aircraft, target tugs, anti-aircraft units around the country, anti-aircraft units, converted from B.35 bomber version, radar operators, 'stealth' characteristics, British Aerospace-owned, flyable Mosquito, European skies, restored aircraft may fly in the next year, a popular movement, restoring a Mosquito to flight status, presenting it to the nation, the outcome of WW2, honouring those who gave their lives, public memorials, gave their lives in the service of their country

Category: aircraft, Aviation, British Isles, England, Great Britain, London, military, Museums, RAF, Royal Air Force, Second World War, United States, warbird

10 Comments

This aircraft has it all – speed, power, grace. It was built against all the odds, when the Air Ministry just couldn’t understand the concept of a bomber without defensive armament or gun turrets. It was only due to the staunch support of the Air Member for Research and Development, Air Chief Marshal Sir Wilfred Rhodes Freeman, Baronet, KGCB, DSO, MC, FRAeS, RAF, that the De Havilland DH.98 Mosquito was built at all; indeed, its detractors often refered to it as ‘Freeman’s Folly’. The prototype Mosquito, W4050, was built in secrecy close to Salisbury Hall, Hertfordshire, and took off from a small field nearby on 25th November, 1940, to start its flight test programme. It was only because of its mainly balsa/plywood ‘sandwich’ construction, with wood being used wherever possible so using relatively little strategic metal resources, that it got the green light under Specification B.1/40. W4050 soon amazed a gathering of senior officers and others by exhibiting near-400 mph speed, extreme manoeuverability for a twin, and performing upward rolls with one of its two Rolls-Royce Merlin engines feathered! It became the fastest warplane in Europe – of ANY type – a title it held for nearly 18 months; indeed, it stayed the fastest bomber in RAF service until the 1950s, and the advent of the twin-jet English Electric Canberra.

Everyone now wanted the Mosquito!  RAF Coastal Command for anti-shipping strikes, Fighter Command as a superb night-fighter and day fighter-bomber, Bomber Command as a hard-hitting low-level attack aircraft and later a night bomber with the capacity to carry a 4,000 lb bomb to Berlin and return (and do it TWICE in one night!). Photo-reconnaisance units prized it for its enormous range – able to penetrate as far as Prague, Czechoslovakia in later versions - and its ability to outmanoeuver opposing German fighters. Even the USAAF wanted the Mossie, going so far as to suggest a one for one swap involving P-51 aircraft!

Production was split amongst many UK subcontractors in the former wood-working and furniture trades, and rapidly spread to Canada and Australia. Even after the end of the war, Mosquito night-fighters, such as the NF.30, were used to defend Great Britain until the new jet aircraft could be developed (No. 616 Squadron, RAuxAF, at RAF Finningley, near Doncaster, was an example of this). The final versions produced were target tugs, which provided fast towing  and target facilities for anti-aircraft units around the country; some of these were converted from B.35 bomber versions, (as seen in the above photograph) which was taken in the Royal Air Force Museum’s  ’Milestones of Flight’ Gallery at Hendon. Inadvertently, the Mossie must have given radar operators a harder time than they might have expected, because its wooden structure conveys certain ‘stealth’ characteristics. 

Due to the tragic loss of the British Aerospace-owned  ’RR299′ at Barton, in 1996, there is no longer a flyable Mosquito in European skies (up to three restored aircraft may fly in the next year or so, one in New Zealand, one in the USA and one in Canada). However, there is big news this month; a popular movement has been formed with the avowed intent of restoring a Mosquito to flight status, and then presenting it to the nation – in the shape of the RAF’s Battle of Britain Memorial Flight – so that future generations can marvel at the sight and sound of a warplane which did so much to influence the outcome of WW2. I would urge you all to support the efforts of the ‘Peoples Mosquito’ organization (links at the bottom of this page), as being not only the right thing to do, but as a way of honouring those who gave their lives in the service of their country. Bomber Command, especially, has been under-represented until recently in the way of public memorials, and this would be a wonderful way of righting that omission. As I was saying to a friend, ‘It’s Mosquito time’!

http://twitter.com/#!/peoplesmosquito

http://www.peoplesmosquito.org.uk/

http://www.wix.com/varcs4/peoplesmosquito