DHAMT

DH98  Mosquito Prototype W4050 / E0234

You will all no doubt be pleased to know that a concerted preservation effort is to be made on the Prototype.

This aircraft is the jewel in the crown of the de Havilland Heritage Centre, but is long overdue for some well deserved preservation work. We have no excuses for the delay in starting this preservation work, but in our defence, I feel that as one of the most historic surviving aircraft in the world, we team of volunteers were somewhat reticent to tackle the preservation of this aircraft, as we realised we could do more damage than good if it were not carried out properly.Having ‘cut our teeth’ on the FBVI Mosquito,  the team feel we can start on the preservation exercise on W4050. In addition most of the Mosquito Team attended the training courses provided by the National Heritage Aviation Skills Initiative (NAHSI). This series of courses, funded by the Lottery Heritage Fund, provided us with a wealth of skills and knowledge and has certainly ‘raised the bar’ in the quality of our efforts. I would like to thank the NAHSI  team for all their efforts and support over the last few years.

So what is planned for the Prototype?

The first major milestone for the aircraft is to dismantle the wing and fuselage and to re-locate the two parts into the main hangar.

This exercise has already started in that all parts that have to be removed to allow the wing and fuselage to be separated have already been removed or the fixings freed-up ready for removal.

The radiators, radiator housings, engine cowlings and bearers have already been removed by Russell Turner.  He has also freed-up the  main undercarriage bolts and main wing fixing bolts (Joint A & Joint B).

It is planned to dismantle the aircraft and re-locate it to the main hangar over the closed season (November to March) this year.  The Aircraft will remain as a separated wing and fuselage for the forseeable future.

Once relocated work can start in earnest. Over the years some areas of the fabric covering have split, allowing moisture to ingress and cause some damage to the underlying wood. It is therefore planned to divide the aircraft into sections (not literally!) and remove the fabric from each of these sections in turn, inspect the underlying wood and perform any repairs that are necessary. Once repaired this section will be recovered and doped before proceeding to the next section.

In preparation for this re-fabricing of the aircraft a careful stripping of the layers of paint around the aircraft markings has been carried out. This is so that when the completed aircraft is re-painted the original markings can be accurately reproduced. It should also be noted that the original fabric will be removed in pieces as large as possible and these original fabric pieces must be safely stored for future reference.

One major decision that had to be made was “What paint scheme and equipment should we adopt in the final configuration?”. This was not an easy question to answer, however we decided to follow the guidelines used by such organisations as the Smithsonian and the RAF Museum, these being, to restore an aircraft to the configuration it exhibited at a significant point in its history.

With this in mind we decided that we would restore the aircraft to the configuration it had when is was officially the fastest aircraft in the world. This will result in the Prototype being painted in brown and green camouflage on the upper surfaces with the under surfaces being in trainer yellow.  In addition the engine fit will be Merlin 70 series with two stage superchargers.

The work to be carried out on the Prototype will differ significantly from that currently being done on the FBVI.  With the FBVI, the aircraft had been extensively stripped of equipment and even had holes cut in the fuselage to examine how the joints were made between the bulkheads and the skin, this gave us license to replace many parts and even re-wire the aircraft with new cables. However, the Prototype was effectively ‘hand made’. Every nut and bolt is part of the original fabric of the aircraft and must be preserved at all costs. (We have even noticed that bolt heads have their details hand scribed onto their heads). In view of this it is essential that we keep to the adage:

“Preserve rather than restore

Restore rather than replace

Replace only when necessary”

                  Louis S Casey

It is therefore essential that all the original parts are recovered, preserved and then replaced in their original positions.

One other aspect of this preservation exercise is that it will give us a unique opportunity to examine parts of the aircraft unseen for over half a century. These include the original short nacelles, (Still visible inside the modified extended nacelles) and the leading-edge slats, (the Prototype was the only Mosquito equipped with these).  Also, possibly evidence of modifications such as the dummy gun turret which was fitted just aft of the Cockpit canopy.   It is even documented that the signatures of some of the original construction team are to be found in one of the wheel bays.  As we discover these fascinating artefacts, you can be sure we will report the findings  directly to you.

Finally we will be launching an appeal for funds to help with this very important project.  An initial target of £30,000 is going to be set and a statement of progress will be recorded in subsequent issues of this newsletter.

Bob Glasby