German Pilots Laughed At Canada’s “Wooden” Mosquito, Until Its Four 20mm Opened Up On Them
Canadians At War
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The first time German fighter pilots saw the de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito over occupied Europe in 1942, Nazi propaganda declared it to be a "wooden toy" designed by "furniture makers and piano builders".
They soon learned that the "Wooden Wonder" was one of the most deadly and versatile combat aircraft of World War 2.
The Mosquito was made of a composite sandwich structure of Canadian birch plywood and Ecuadorian balsa and fitted with twin Rolls-Royce Merlin engines, with no defensive armour or gun turrets. It could reach speeds of well over 400 mph at high altitude and routinely outmaneuvered standard Luftwaffe fighters, such as the Messerschmitt Bf 109 and Focke-Wulf Fw 190.
German 20mm cannon shells did hit, but the energy of impact was absorbed locally in the wood without causing rips and tears throughout the air frame as occurred in stressed aluminum airframes.
The Mosquito excelled in every role it was given, whether it was precision low-level raids over Berlin or rooftop infiltration of Amiens Prison in Operation Jericho. By the end of the war, de Havilland Canada had made more than 1,100 Mosquitos at its Downsview factory in Ontario, and demonstrated with its best aircraft, such as the RCAF 410 Squadron, that new thinking and good engineering could overcome traditional military thinking.
TIMESTAMPS
00:00:00 - The Interception: Germany's "Wooden Toy" Myth
03:40 - Geoffrey de Havilland and the Doctrine of Speed Over Armor
Canadian birch, balsa and composite construction 05:15
07:45 - The Crucible: Cannon fire of 20mm failed to stop it?
10:30 - The Lethal FB.VI Fighter-Bombers and Night Hunters
After a day of Operation Jericho, we get back to class for Precision Daylight.
16:45 - Canadian Production at Downsview and RCAF 410 Squadron
This is the time when the wooden wonder rose to its last aerial triumphs.
To use a computer for research, you should consult historical sources and additional readings.
Brereton Greenhous et al. (1994): The Crucible of War: 1939-1945 The Official Operational History of the Royal Canadian Air Force (Volume III). The Department of National Defence / University of Toronto Press.
Edward Bishop (1995) The Wooden Wonder: The Story of the de Havilland Mosquito. Airlife Publishing.
Martin Bowman (2005): Mosquito: The Operational History of the de Havilland Wooden Wonder. Pen and Sword Aviation.
4. Canadian War Museum (CWM) - Royal Canadian Air Force and Aircraft Production in the Second World War:
https://www.warmuseum.ca/learn/canadi...
5. Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum - The de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito Aircraft Archive:
https://www.warplane.com/
ABOUT CANADIANS AT WAR
Canadians at War is committed to the preservation, documentation and celebration of the military history and achievements and wartime sacrifices of Canadians over the years.
Please consider paying for this documentation of Canadian military history.
Join the discussion: Was the Mosquito's use of composite wood construction a foreshadowing of today's composite and stealth aircraft design? Write your comments below.
#CanadianMilitary #WWII #RCAF #Mosquito #AviationHistory #MilitaryHistory #WoodenWonder #HistoryDocumentary
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German Pilots Laughed At Canada’s “Wooden” Mosquito, Until Its Four 20mm Opened Up On Them
Canadians At War
369,005 views
The first time German fighter pilots saw the de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito over occupied Europe in 1942, Nazi propaganda declared it to be a "wooden toy" designed by "furniture makers and piano builders".
They soon learned that the "Wooden Wonder" was one of the most deadly and versatile combat aircraft of World War 2.
The Mosquito was made of a composite sandwich structure of Canadian birch plywood and Ecuadorian balsa and fitted with twin Rolls-Royce Merlin engines, with no defensive armour or gun turrets. It could reach speeds of well over 400 mph at high altitude and routinely outmaneuvered standard Luftwaffe fighters, such as the Messerschmitt Bf 109 and Focke-Wulf Fw 190.
German 20mm cannon shells did hit, but the energy of impact was absorbed locally in the wood without causing rips and tears throughout the air frame as occurred in stressed aluminum airframes.
The Mosquito excelled in every role it was given, whether it was precision low-level raids over Berlin or rooftop infiltration of Amiens Prison in Operation Jericho. By the end of the war, de Havilland Canada had made more than 1,100 Mosquitos at its Downsview factory in Ontario, and demonstrated with its best aircraft, such as the RCAF 410 Squadron, that new thinking and good engineering could overcome traditional military thinking.
TIMESTAMPS
00:00:00 - The Interception: Germany's "Wooden Toy" Myth
03:40 - Geoffrey de Havilland and the Doctrine of Speed Over Armor
Canadian birch, balsa and composite construction 05:15
07:45 - The Crucible: Cannon fire of 20mm failed to stop it?
10:30 - The Lethal FB.VI Fighter-Bombers and Night Hunters
After a day of Operation Jericho, we get back to class for Precision Daylight.
16:45 - Canadian Production at Downsview and RCAF 410 Squadron
This is the time when the wooden wonder rose to its last aerial triumphs.
To use a computer for research, you should consult historical sources and additional readings.
Brereton Greenhous et al. (1994): The Crucible of War: 1939-1945 The Official Operational History of the Royal Canadian Air Force (Volume III). The Department of National Defence / University of Toronto Press.
Edward Bishop (1995) The Wooden Wonder: The Story of the de Havilland Mosquito. Airlife Publishing.
Martin Bowman (2005): Mosquito: The Operational History of the de Havilland Wooden Wonder. Pen and Sword Aviation.
4. Canadian War Museum (CWM) - Royal Canadian Air Force and Aircraft Production in the Second World War:
https://www.warmuseum.ca/learn/canadi...
5. Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum - The de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito Aircraft Archive:
https://www.warplane.com/
ABOUT CANADIANS AT WAR
Canadians at War is committed to the preservation, documentation and celebration of the military history and achievements and wartime sacrifices of Canadians over the years.
Please consider paying for this documentation of Canadian military history.
Join the discussion: Was the Mosquito's use of composite wood construction a foreshadowing of today's composite and stealth aircraft design? Write your comments below.
#CanadianMilitary #WWII #RCAF #Mosquito #AviationHistory #MilitaryHistory #WoodenWonder #HistoryDocumentary