The 8-Machine Gun Wooden Airplane that Terrified Germany - DH.98 Mosquito

The fastest aircraft of its time was almost entirely made of wood. It was known as the Wooden Wonder, the Timber Terror, or the Loping Lumberyard, and they all referred to the same legendary aircraft: the de Havilland Mosquito.

The Mosquito entered World War II relatively late and immediately broke speed records. It also featured more advanced technology and better aerodynamics than its predecessors.

None was more surprised than the Royal Air Force, which initially ridiculed the idea to build a life-size model aircraft for an actual war. In an era in which aircraft were heavy in armor and weight, it seemed preposterous to build a bomber with no guns. However, the Mosquito would rely on its speed.

The aircraft flew around Europe executing many different missions, which no other aircraft equaled in diversity and precision.

It was also one of the first successful multirole combat aircraft, and dozens of versions were eventually built, from the bomber and the fighter to the reconnaissance aircraft.

As Mosquito pilot Max Sparks would say: “It is wrong to say it’s a legend, because legend suggests it wasn’t real, and the Mosquito was certainly reality.”


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