United Kingdom's De Havilland DH.98 Mosquito¹

De Havilland DH.98 Mosquito:

De Havilland DH.98 Mosquito:

De Havilland DH.98 Mosquito:

De Havilland DH.98 Mosquito:

De Havilland DH.98 Mosquito:

De Havilland DH.98 Mosquito:

De Havilland Sea Mosquito:

Design

The de Havilland Mosquito was a private venture that was made primarily of wood that was conceived in 1938.²

The outer skin was made of two plywood skins with spruce blocks between.¹ The wing was made out of wood with a fabric cover.¹

The bomber and reconnaissance versions had glazed noses.¹

The propellers rotated in the same direction which caused the plane to have a swing on take-off.¹

Prototype

Officials weren't thrilled by the plane but eventually it's performance sold it.¹

The first prototype flew on November 25, 1940.^1,2

Production

Australia1	2081
Canada1	1,1341
United Kingdom1	6,4391
Total	7,7811,2

On November 28, 1950, the very last Mosquito, a night fighter, was built.¹

Variants

• Mk I: Photo reconnaissance version.²
• NF. Mk II: Used as a night fighter with four 20 mm and four 7.7 mm guns.² Entered service in May 1942.²
• T. Mk III: Trainer.²
• B. Mk IV: High speed bomber that was unarmed.² Entered service in May 1942.²
• FB. Mk VI: Fighter bomber.² Could carry two 500 lb / 227 kg bombs in bomb bay.²
• PR. Mk VIII: Photo reconnaissance.²
• B. Mk IX: Bomber.² Joined the Bomber Command in 1944.² Could carry, in a modified bomb bay, a 4,000 lb / 1,814 kg bomb.² Carried the bomb all the way to Berlin.² Oboe (pathfinding radar) was installed.²
• NF. Mk XII: Night fighter.² Had radar.²
• NF. Mk XIII: Night fighter.² Had radar.²
• B. Mk XVI: Bomber.² Could carry a 4,000 lb / 1,814 kg bomb.² Pressurized cabin.² Wing drop tanks.²
• PR. Mk XVI: Photo reconnaissance.²
• NF. Mk XVII: Night fighter.² Used the American Mk X radar.²
• FB. Mk XVIII: Anti shipping.² Mounted in the nose was a 57 mm Molins gun.²
• NF. Mk 30: Night fighter.² High altitude.²
• PR. Mk 34: Photo reconnaissance.² High altitude.² To be used in Far East.²

Usage

Twelve allied nations flew the Mosquito.¹

First Use

The Royal Air Force (RAF) accepted the Mk I photo reconnaissance version in the middle of 1941.²

Against the Gestapo

The Mosquitos were used in a precision bombing mission against the Gestapo headquarters in Oslo, Norway.¹ Unfortunately the bombs were duds.¹

Air Craft Carrier Use

On March 25, 1944, a Mosquito became the first twin-engined plane to land on a carrier, the HMS Indefatigable.¹

	De Havilland DH.98 Mosquito1	de Havilland Mosquito PR.Mk 342
Type	Light bomber1	Photo reconnaissance2
Crew		22
Engine (Type)	2: Rolls-Royce Merlin 21 Piston1	2: Rolls-Royce Merlin 76 or 113 piston2
Cylinders	Inline1	Inline2
Cooling
HP	1,230 each1	1,710 each2
Propeller blades	31
Dimensions
Span	54'1 16.51 m1	54' 2"2 16.51 m2
Length	41'1 12.43 m1	41' 6"2 12.65 m2
Height	15'1 4.65 m1	15' 3"2 4.65 m2
Wing area	454 ft2 1 42.18 m2 1	454 ft2 2 42.18 m2 2
Weight
Empty	14,080 lb1 6,400 kg1	16,631 lb2 7,544 kg2
Loaded	22,440 lb1 10,200 kg1	25,500 lb2 11,567 kg2
Performance
Speed @ 21,000' / 6,400 m	379 mph1 612 kph1
Speed @ 30,500' / 9,295 m		425 mph2 684 kph2
Climb to 15,000' / 4,570 m		72 minutes2
Service ceiling	34,450'1 10,500 m1	36,000'2 10,970 m2
Range	1,860 miles1 3,000 km1	3,500 miles2 5,633 km2
Armament		None2
Bombs	4: 500 lb1 4: 227 kg1
Production

Sources:

1. Aircraft of WWII, General Editor: Jim Winchester, 2004
2. Fighting Aircraft of World War II, Editor: Karen Leverington, 1995

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