Pic(k) of the week 36: Wooden wonder, de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito
One of my personal highlights of Airventure 2015, was the presence of one of the worlds only two airworthy Mosquito's. Nicknamed the "Wooden Wonder", this British built multi-role bomber, was one of the only WW II aircraft built almost entirely out of wood, as aluminium was in short supply during the war.
Initially designed as a fast lightweight bomber, the aircraft then took multiple other roles such as fast reconnaissance, night fighter/bomber and maritime intruder. The original aircraft had no guns nor armoured plating as it used its high speed as the only defence. With cruise speeds close to 400 mph it remained one of the fastest allied WWII aircraft for a good part of WW II.
What had become a rotting pile of wood, has been restored to a beautiful aircraft over a period of more than 8 years by the amazing craftsmen of AvSpecs in New Zealand. The "Mossie" (other popular nickname for the Mosquito) is owned by Jerry Yagen, and now based at the Military Aviation Museum in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Total restoration costs exceeded 4 million USD.
Well deserved for its excellent attention to detail, the aircraft won the Golden Wrench award for the best restored WW II warbird of the 2015 show.
Image details:
Fujifilm X-T1 with the XF50-140 2.8 Fujinon lens
ISO200, 100mm, f7.1, 1/500s
RAW development in Lightroom CC
Nik ColorEfex Pro with Pro contrast
More images of my visit to the Airventure 2015 event at Oshkosh (WI, USA), can be found here, while more Mosquito images live here.
Remember: "Never was so much owed by so many to so few" - 20 AUG 1940 Winston Churchill
Initially designed as a fast lightweight bomber, the aircraft then took multiple other roles such as fast reconnaissance, night fighter/bomber and maritime intruder. The original aircraft had no guns nor armoured plating as it used its high speed as the only defence. With cruise speeds close to 400 mph it remained one of the fastest allied WWII aircraft for a good part of WW II.
What had become a rotting pile of wood, has been restored to a beautiful aircraft over a period of more than 8 years by the amazing craftsmen of AvSpecs in New Zealand. The "Mossie" (other popular nickname for the Mosquito) is owned by Jerry Yagen, and now based at the Military Aviation Museum in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Total restoration costs exceeded 4 million USD.
Well deserved for its excellent attention to detail, the aircraft won the Golden Wrench award for the best restored WW II warbird of the 2015 show.
Image details:
Fujifilm X-T1 with the XF50-140 2.8 Fujinon lens
ISO200, 100mm, f7.1, 1/500s
RAW development in Lightroom CC
Nik ColorEfex Pro with Pro contrast
More images of my visit to the Airventure 2015 event at Oshkosh (WI, USA), can be found here, while more Mosquito images live here.
Remember: "Never was so much owed by so many to so few" - 20 AUG 1940 Winston Churchill
BJORN
Comments