Wednesday, 4 December 2024

De Havilland Mosquito B Mk.XVI

My second Mossie, the Airfix Mosquito Mk.XVI, is the bomber variant of this amazing aircraft which could carry a payload as great as the American's B-17 Flying Fortress!

I’ve finished this Mossie in the markings of ML963, 8K-K ‘King” of 571 Squadron. It was based at RAF Oakington, near Cambridge from April 1944 as part of the No. 8 (Pathfinder) Group. Its main role was to carry out independent precision raids on German industrial targets using a 4,000 lb "Cookie" bomb (that's massive). Having completed 84 operations with the Squadron, 31 of them to Berlin, its  final mission was on 10/11 April 1945, following which it had to be abandoned with an engine fire; not good when the majority of the aircraft was constructed of wood!


 


An example of the type of missions it was tasked with, was that flown by the Squadron Commander, Wing Commander R J Gosnell DSO, on New Years Day 1945.  This was a low-level sortie to skip a 4,000 lb bomb into the Bitburg Railway Tunnel, in Germany; that's precision bombing. Although the tunnel was destroyed by another of the squadron's Mosquitos, Gosnell himself reported "Special Duties against Railway Tunnel - Run up target to plan. No bomb burst seen, opposition nil, light flak from Trier, excellent visibility".  So, not his best mission, but he at least returned to fight another day. Interestingly, he's the only one listed in this aircraft in the squadron mission report, which is unusual as the Mossie usually has a crew of 2

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