Happy Birthday To The de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito

Warbirds News was the first media to report the first U.S. flight of the Mosquito. Click HERE.

De Havilland Comet – Fantastic bu...
De Havilland Comet – Fantastic but Flawed

Warbirds News was the first media to report the first U.S. flight of the Mosquito. Click HERE.
Warbirds News was the first media to report the first U.S. flight of the Mosquito. Click HERE.

By Aviation Enthusiasts LLC

Seventy-three years ago today, the de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito took flight for the first time.  One of the most useful Allied aircraft of World War II, the Mosquito performed as a bomber, fighter, anti-shipping and photo-reconnaissance platform.  The key to the success of the “Wooden Wonder” was its light wood construction and the power of its twin Merlin engines, which gave it the speed to out-fly almost every other aircraft type of the war.  Nicknamed the “Mossie” by its crews, the Mosquito could fly virtually unchallenged and deliver devastatingly precise attacks with bombing radar.  Production of all Mosquitoes totaled 7,781 and the DH.98 served with over a dozen nations.  A Mosquito became the first twin-engine aircraft to land on a ship on March 25, 1944, aboard the Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Indefatigable.

Here is one of our photos of the world’s only airworthy DH.98 Mosquito from the Military Aviation Museum in Virginia Beach, Virginia during the 2013 Flying PROMS airshow.  This Mosquito was built in Canada in 1945 but never saw combat during the war.  The Military Aviation Museum acquired the aircraft in 2004 and it was shipped to New Zealand to undergo an eight-year restoration.  It made its first flight over New Zealand in September 2012 and arrived back at the Military Aviation Museum in March 2013.  It is painted as EG-Y to replicate the No. 487 (NZ) Squadron of the Royal New Zealand Air Force as a tribute to those responsible for the restoration.  Fly over to Aviation Enthusiast’s full website at www.aviation-enthusiasts.com for more aviation and air show memories!

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