Sunday at the Mossie Museum

Wonderful , I just can't get enough of these . I hope one day I'll be able to see this bird fly again .

 

Although the one which flew in New Zealand has now gone to the USA and is unlikely to be seen in Europe ( at least for a very long time ) there are rumours, hints and rumblings of for another reconstructed one to eventually fly over here.

 

Mossies were famous for their Rhubarb Raids. This clip (re my previous aside) has recently surfaced.
It was also used in WW2 Low Level Navigation Training films.

Daring low level RAF bombing attack on Philips Eindhoven radio plant

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2TYEJnm8Ms

 

Very impressive to see them fly at daylight at such low altitude

 

It's mentioned in more than one book that somewhere - I have yet to find it - is a film-still in which a bomb can be seen horizontally entering the front door of Aarhus University when under Mosquito attack. And certainly, on the famous 'Operation Jericho' Amiens Gaol raid, one of the Mossies had to climb to avoid the outside wall. The wall is, I think, about 15ft high......

 

BUMP! Some of us drop in here weekly for updates Martin!

44 Minute Movie: Battle Stations - Mosquito Attack

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLdVIKyx7RE

 

The last major visual item for Mosquito FB.VI TA122 is the tailplane, most of which has been hanging on the wall of the Museum for several years. Yesterday, the time had come for it to come down...ever so gently...



It's been restored once before, so isn't full of rot and woodworm. But it contains parts which had been insensitively restored and lacks much of its plywood skin, so much work is in store. But when finished, it'll be the last major external part of the aircraft to be completed, leaving only detailing to be done.

 

I can't stop watching with amazement Martin, these workers are magicians. I can't believe they could fix the plywood parts like they were before. Apparently they had to replace evey part of the inside too.

 

I was even handed my own little 'project' yesterday.



This is the original cockpit canopy from Mosquito W4050, the very first prototype. This hand-built canopy is different from every other Mosquito and has many unique fittings which it acquired through its life as various alternative specifications were experimented with. Even the repairs where perspex has cracked were carefully hand-fettled by de Havilland technicians.

Aircraft restoration often consists of discarding anything sub-standard and replacing with new, or newly-fabricated, items. But the prototype is a historic relic in itself. I pointed out yesterday that many of the perspex panels will be the ones which Geoffrey de Havilland jnr looked out of.....

So, 'tearing the canopy apart' will not be an option !

 

Priceless Martin. Thanks for sharing that. Keep your camera handy, and us in mind!

That would be an interesting photo to see. Must have been shot by one of the two bombers following the drop in the pic below...
- Close enough to get the delayed fuse blast wave, I would think.

Denmark's Aarhus University just after it was bombed by Royal Air Force. It was used as the Gestapo Headquarters.



Impact.



Seconds after.

 

Bit of a challenge at the Museum today, but an important landmark in the ongoing restoration of the Mosquito Prototype. The original wing section has been stored vertically for 18 months and now has to be laid flat so that the fabric can be stripped and re-covered. Sounds easy, but it weighs 2.5 tons ; the dreaded 'health & Safety' is obviously paramount but also - dropping it isn't an option ( we can't exactly buy another one ! ).

Operations begin with a cup of coffee in the clubjouse - the RAF Museum's Ian Thirsk ( on the right in the photo ) is on hand. As the only surviving prototype of an operational WWII aircraft, the RAFM keep a close eye on progress with this restoration....



In the hangar, we're all told what ( and what not ! ) to do....



Ready at the vertical...



Gently does it.............



Nearly there......



The specially-constructed platform is put in place...



Job done !



And all ready for the Winter work schedule.........

 

Excellent stuff, Martin. Next time someone says "they were only made of wood", show them these pics.

 

First film of the Mossie.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aigoxi6Q0eg

 

A nice, cosy Winter scene taken today....



...pic taken under the wing of the FB.VI with the B.35 in the background and in the middle the guys are working on the dismantled Protorype.

 

Hi Martin.

Are the engines Packard or RR?

I assume the Packards are SAE vs metric. I'm pretty sure you'll know.

Just curious

 

Engines on all three aircraft in the photo are Rolls-Royce built, although some Mosquitoes ( eg Canadian-built B.XXs etc ) used Packard units......

 

Thanks Martin. A few days ago I withheld getting on your case about updates here!. Thankfully!
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How on earth I missed this I will never know. http://www.mossie.org/KA114.htm

KA114 Fly-By rebuilt / restored by AvSpecs (a.k.a. Warbird Restorations) in Auckland.

Turn the speakers up LOUD.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-I4hZah_Pc

 

What can you say....? That clip is just about perfect, isn't it ? No dreadful synthesized muzak, no commentary......excellent !

If only we could see this sight in the UK.......

 

Yep. He caught everything I was after.
Video and sound of the aircraft from the side, from an straight in approach, from a diagonal approach, retreating away, climbing, descending.

Very, very well thought out bit of film.

Thanks for this goes to: http://www.youtube.com/user/HAFUVideo?feature=watch