Mosquito

Contents: 1. The Concept. The birth of the D.H.98 design; 2. Concept Becomes Reality. From drawing board to production; 3. Into Action. The arrival of the Mosquito in RAF service; 4. The Multi-role Combatant. The ability of the Mosquito is finally realised; 5. Special Operations. The Mosquito's use for a number of special tasks; 6. All at Sea. The Mosquito's use by the Banff Wing and the Royal Navy; 7. Worldwide Service. A look at the Mosquito's use around the globe; 8. Post-War Operations. Post-war RAF operations and foreign and civil operators of the Mosquito; Modelling the Mosquito: Colour Side Views; Cockpit Artwork; 9. The Basics. The starting point for modelling the Mosquito in 1/72nd, 1/48th and 1/32nd scales; 10. Understanding the Subject. A detailed analysis of all the different versions of Mosquito, and how to model them; 11. Detailing. A detailed look in and around the Mosquito; 12. Building the Mosquito. Nine different versions of the Mosquito are built in 1/48th scale; 13. Colour & Marking Notes.A modeller's guide to the colour and markings applied to the Mosquito throughout its career. Appendix I - Kit Listing. A complete listing of all the Mosquito construction kits; Appendix II - Conversions & Accessories. A complete listing of conversions and accessories produced for the Mosquito; Appendix III - Decals. A concise listing of all Mosquito decal sheets; Appendix IV - Powerplants. Technical specifications of all Rolls Royce Merlin engines used in the Mosquito, including Packard-built versions; Appendix V - Variants. A complete listing of the technical specifications of the different Mosquito variants; Appendix VI - Genealogy. The genealogy of the Mosquito from Prototype to final production; Appendix VII - Squadrons. A complete listing of Mosquito Squadrons; Appendix VIII - Chronology. A concise chronology of the Mosquito's history (second page is missing); Appendix IX - Production. A complete listing of Mosquito production (first page is missing); Appendix X - Bibliography. Mosquito Bibliography.

The Mosquito was one of the most remarkable planes of World War Two. The De Havilland DH-98 Mosquito was a twin-engine, two-seat plane which could operate day or night. In whatever capacity, the Mosquito proved to be immensely successful – for a ‘wooden’ plane.

The de Havilland Mosquito was a British combat aircraft that excelled in a number of roles during the Second World War. It served with the RAF and many other air forces both in the Second World War and postwar.
The Mosquito was a twin-engine aircraft, powered by a pair of Rolls-Royce Merlins with the pilot and navigator sitting side by side. Unorthodox in design, it used a plywood structure of spruce and balsa in a time when wooden construction was considered outmoded. In the conceptual design stage, de Havilland designers found that adding any defensive armament would significantly reduce the aircraft's maximum speed. Realising that the loss in performance was not worth the benefit, the initial bomber version was designed without any guns. The Mosquito was a very versatile aircraft; originally conceived as a fast day bomber, the various roles of the Mosquito included: tactical bomber, pathfinder, day or night fighter, fighter-bomber, intruder, maritime strike and photo reconnaissance aircraft.
The Mosquito inspired admiration from all quarters, including the Commander-in-Chief of the Luftwaffe, Hermann Goring. Goring was due to address a parade in Berlin in the morning of 30 January 1943, commemorating the 10th anniversary of the Nazis' seizure of power. The low level attack of three 105 Squadron Mosquito B Mk. IV on the main Berlin broadcasting station put Reichsmarschall Goring off the air for more than an hour, as he was about to launch into a scheduled speech.