| R.E. Bishop | |
|---|---|
| Born | 27 February 1903 Kensington |
| Died | 11 June 1989[1] |
| Nationality | British |
| Spouse | Nora |
| Children | 2 sons |
| Work | |
| Engineering discipline | Aeronautics |
| Employer(s) | de Havilland 1921 - 64[2] |
| Significant advance | de Havilland Mosquito, de Havilland Comet |
| Significant awards | Gold Medal, RAeS (1964) |
Ronald Eric Bishop CBE FRAeS (1903-1989) was the chief designer of the de Havilland Mosquito, one of the most famous aircraft of the Second World War. Bishop also designed the de Havilland Comet.[3]
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He was born in Kensington.
He joined de Havilland as an apprentice aged 18 in 1921, and would work there for the next forty three years. He joined the company's design office in 1923, .
He became the Chief Designer in 1936, taking over from Arthur Hagg. The first plane he was responsible for was the DH95 Flamingo- the company's first all-metal monoplane. It had a stressed-skin and carried 17 passengers, first flying on 22 December 1938. Winston Churchill used one to journey to France in the early months of the war before Dunkirk (Operation Dynamo).
Also in his design team were:
The outstanding achievement of his design office was the DH.98 Mosquito. It was initially expected to reach 376 mph, but managed 388 mph when first tested - Britain's fastest aircraft at the time. It was known as the Wooden Wonder. It had been conceived in 1938. The Air Ministry were not amenable to the whole idea, and did not fund the design. Air Chief Marshal Sir Wilfrid Freeman, of the Air Staff, was interested in the concept the plane was known as Freeman's Folly. The plane would later be the fastest war-time aircraft for two and a half years; it was difficult to shoot down as a result. The plane was officially announced on 26 October 1942, and been de Havilland's first military plane since the Airco DH.10 of the First World War. On 5 May 1943 its high speed prowess was announced.
After the war he became Design Director on the company's Board of Directors on 27 December 1946 until February 1964, when he retired. Later that year in October he received the Gold Medal of the RAeS.
Aircraft he was responsible for were:
He married Nora in Rochford in 1936. They had two sons. He received the CBE in 1946. He lived at Fieldgate on Redbourn Lane (B487) in Hatching Green, Harpenden, then South Holme.
He died in June 1989 at the age of 86.