de Havilland Moth Minor
| DH.94 Moth Minor | |
|---|---|
 | |
| An ex RAAF DH.94 Moth Minor at the Benalla Aviation Museum in June 2012. | |
| Role | Tourer/Trainer |
| Manufacturer | de Havilland |
| Designer | J.P. Smith |
| First flight | 22 June 1937 |
| Number built | c.140 |
| Unit cost |
£575 |
The de Havilland DH.94 Moth Minor was a 1930s British two-seat tourer/trainer aircraft built by de Havilland at Hatfield Aerodrome, England and by de Havilland Australia at Bankstown Aerodrome, Australia.
Design and development
The Moth Minor was designed as a low-wing monoplane to replace the biplane Moth series, and was intended to give similar performance with less power and not need rigging. Its predecessor was the DH.81 Swallow Moth monoplane of 1931, of which only one was built. The wooden prototype of the DH.94 was first flown by Geoffrey de Havilland on 22 June 1937 at Hatfield Aerodrome.[1] Production started and nearly 100 examples had been built by the outbreak of World War II. With a selling price of only £575[1] the Moth Minor was popular with flying clubs keen to acquire modern monoplanes. Nine aircraft were specially-built with hinged coupe tops instead of the normally open cockpit.
As the factory at Hatfield was needed for the war effort the drawings, jigs, components and unfinished aircraft were shipped to the de Havilland factory at Bankstown, Sydney. More than 40 aircraft were produced in Australia.[1]
Civil aircraft operated in the United Kingdom were commandeered for use by the Royal Air Force and Fleet Air Arm, and one example was used by the United States Army Air Corps. A large number of civil aircraft from the UK were sent to Australia, where they and a handful of locally-built Australian civil aircraft were commandeered by the Royal Australian Air Force.[2]
After World War II several Moth Minors continued to be flown by private owners in the United Kingdom.
Variants
- DH.94 Moth Minor : Two-seat touring and training aircraft.
- Moth Minor Coupe : Two-seat touring and training aircraft, with a built-up rear fuselage and hinged cabin top.
Operators
Military operators
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Specifications
Data from British Civil Aircraft since 1919, Vol 2 [1]
General characteristics
- Crew: Two
- Length: 24 ft 5 in (7.44 m)
- Wingspan: 36 ft 7 in (11.15 m)
- Height: 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
- Wing area: 162 ft² (15.05 m²)
- Empty weight: 983 lb (446 kg)
- Max. takeoff weight: 1,550 lb (703 kg)
- Powerplant: 1 × de Havilland Gipsy Minor 4-cylinder inline piston engine, 90 hp (67 kw)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 103 kn (118 mph, 190 km/h)
- Cruise speed: 87 kn (100 mph, 161 km/h)
- Range: 261 nmi (300 mi, 483 km)
- Service ceiling: 16,500 ft (5,030 m)
- Rate of climb: 620 ft/min (3.15 m/s)
- Wing loading: 9.57 lb/ft² (46.7 kg/m²)
- Power/mass: 0.058 hp/lb (0.095 kW/kg)
Survivors
Australia
- Airworthy
- VH-AIB ex RAAF A21-38 C/N DHP17 is owned by Steve Jenkins and located at Goolwa SA.[3][4][5][6]
- VH-CZB ex RAAF A21-42 C/N 94067 is owned by Mark Carr and located at the Benalla Aviation Museum, Vic.[3][7][8][9]
See also
- Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era
- Related lists
References
- Notes
- 1 2 3 4 Jackson, A.J. (1973). British Civil Aircraft since 1919 Volume 2. London: Putnam. ISBN 0-370-10010-7.
- ↑ ADF Serials list of RAAF Moth Minors. Retrieved: 11 December 2008
- 1 2 ADF Serials list of RAAF Moth Minors. Retrieved: 16 June 2012
- ↑ Clyde North Aeronautical Preservation Group. Retrieved: 16 June 2012
- ↑ Airliners.net. Retrieved: 16 June 2012
- ↑ Ed Coates Aircraft Photographs. Retrieved: 16 June 2012
- ↑ Adventure Flights Benalla - List of Aircraft Retrieved: 16 June 2012
- ↑ Australian Warbirds. Retrieved: 16 June 2012
- ↑ Airliners.net. Retrieved: 16 June 2012
- Bibliography
- The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft (Part Work 1982-1985). Orbis Publishing.
- "Moth Successor: The New Moth Minor Described" Flight 1939
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to De Havilland DH.94 Moth Minor. |
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