Mosquito was probably one of the raf s most versatile aircraft designs, and indeed, an aircraft that we may never have had at all if it wasn t for the perseverance of its designer, geoffrey de havilland

It was actually the simplicity of de havilland s design that could well have seen the project being stillborn. To meet air ministry requirements for a high-speed bomber, de havilland proposed a new airframe, composed mainly of non-strategic materials, and powered by twin rolls royce merlin engines. Unlike designs which were submitted by other manufacturers, de havilland envisaged that his machine would be fast enough to be totally unarmed, and with a smooth, aerodynamic exterior. For the air ministry, this perhaps seemed a little too much like a flight of fancy, and de havilland was asked to simply act as a contractor for designs from other manufacturers

Undeterred, geoffrey de havilland took on the design under a private venture arrangement, using a small design team led by eric bishop, and work began under strict secrecy at salisbury hall, hertfordshire, in october 1939. The aircraft was to be designated dh. 98. Even though de havilland s proposal was for an unarmed bomber, his team created a design, which would allow the installation of four, forward firing cannon that would sit in the forward belly of the aircraft, and fire through blast tubes.

• big 1/32 scale
• length 400mm
• wingspan 515mm

Model comes unassmebled and unpainted, glues and paints sold separately