De Havilland DH.60 Moth
Encyclopedia
The de Havilland DH 60 Moth was a 1920s British
two-seat touring and training aircraft that was developed into a series of aircraft by the de Havilland Aircraft Company
.
. The first flight of the Cirrus powered prototype DH.60 Moth (registration G-EBKT) was carried out by Geoffrey de Havilland at the works airfield at Stag Lane
on 22 February 1925. The Moth was a two-seat biplane of wooden construction, it had a plywood covered fuselage and fabric covered surfaces, a standard tailplane with a single tailplane and fin. A useful feature of the design was its folding wings which allowed owners to hangar the aircraft in much smaller spaces. The then Secretary of State for Air
Sir Samuel Hoare became interested in the aircraft and the Air Ministry
subsidised five flying clubs and equipped them with Moths. The prototype was modified with a horn balanced rudder, as used on the production aircraft, and was entered into the 1925 King's Cup Race
flown by Alan Cobham
. Deliveries commenced to flying schools in England. One of the early aircraft was fitted with an all-metal twin float landing gear to become the first Moth seaplane. The original production Moths were later known as Cirrus I Moths.
Three aircraft were modified for the 1927 King's Cup Race with internal modifications and a Cirrus II engine on a lowered engine mounting. Originally designated the DH.60X (for experimental) this was soon changed to Cirrus II Moth, the DH.60X designation was re-used in 1928 for the Cirrus III powered version with a split axle. The production run for the DH.60X Moth was short as it was replaced by later variants but it was still available to special order.
Although the Cirrus engine was reliable, its manufacture was not. It depended on components salvaged from World War I–era 8-cylinder Renault engines and therefore its numbers were limited by the stockpiles of surplus Renaults. Therefore, de Havilland decided to replace the Cirrus with a new engine built by his own factory. In 1928 when the new de Havilland Gipsy I
engine was available a company DH.60 Moth G-EBQH was re-engined as the prototype of the DH.60G Gipsy Moth.
Next to the increase in power, the main advantage of this update was that the Gipsy was a completely new engine available in as great a number as the manufacture of Moths necessitated. The new Gipsy engines could simply be built in-house on a production line side by side with the production line for Moth airframes. This also enabled the de Havilland Aircraft Company to control the complete process of building a Moth airframe, engine and all, streamline productivity and in the end lower manufacturing costs. While the original DH 60 was offered for a relatively modest £650, by 1930 the price of a new Gipsy-powered Moth was still £650, this in spite of its state-of-the-art engine and the effects of inflation
.
A metal-fuselage version of the Gipsy Moth was designated the DH.60M Moth and was originally developed for overseas customers particularly Canada. The DH.60M was also licence-built in Australia, Canada, the United States and Norway. Also in 1931 a variant of the DH.60M was marketed for military training as the DH.60T Moth Trainer.
In 1931 with the upgrade of the Gipsy engine as the Gipsy II, de Havilland inverted the engine and re-designated it the Gipsy III. The engine was fitted into a Moth aircraft, which was re-designated as the DH.60G-III Moth Major. The sub-type was intended for the military trainer market and some of the first aircraft were supplied to the Swedish Air Force. The DH.60T was re-engined with the Gipsy III and was re-designated the DH.60T Tiger Moth. The DH.60T Tiger Moth was modified with swept back mainplanes, the cabane strut
s were also moved forward to improve egress from the front cockpit
in case of emergency. The changes were considered great enough that the aircraft was re-designated the de Havilland DH.82 Tiger Moth
.
Apart from the engine, the new Gipsy Moth was still a standard DH 60. Except for changes to accommodate the engine the fuselage
remained the same as before, the exhaust
still ran alongside the left side of the cockpit
s and the logo
on the right side still read ‘De Havilland Moth’. The fuel tank was still housed in the bulging airfoil that formed the center section of the upper wing. The wings could still be folded alongside the fuselage and still had de Havilland’s patented differential aileron
s on the bottom mainplanes
and no ailerons on the top ones. Colour options still remained as simple as before: wings and tail in ‘Moth silver’, fuselage in the colour the buyer chose.
flying clubs as the only real recreational aircraft in the UK. By 1929 it was estimated that of every 100 aeroplanes in Britain, 85 were Moths of one type or another, most of them Gipsy Moths. This in spite of the fact that with de Havilland switching from the Cirrus to its own Gipsy engine, surplus Cirrus engines were now pouring into the 'free' market and a trove of Cirrus powered aircraft like the Avro Avian
, the Klemm Swallow or the Miles Hawk
started fighting for their share of the flying club and private market.
Although replaced in production by the DH 60G-III Moth Major and later by the D.H.82 Tiger Moth
, the Gipsy Moth remained the mainstay of the British flying scene up to the start of WWII. The war however marked the end of the Gipsy Moth and post-war it was quickly replaced by ex-RAF Tiger Moths pouring into the civilian market.
flying schools and because of its simplicity and reliable powerplant, the Moth was the aircraft of choice to equip the clubs. Vice versa, the clubs gave de Havilland a secure supply of orders. De Havilland could now use this safety to concentrate on developing the Moth further into a mass-produced mass-market aircraft. So it can be said that the Moth made the Aero Clubs at least just as much as the Aero Clubs made the Moth. Because of this headstart, the Moth became the mainstay of the clubs even long after more modern aircraft became available.
With de Havilland's habit of painting the wings and tailplane of the Moth in silver also came the clubs' habit of distinguishing their aircraft by painting their fuselage in one distinctive club colour. Aircraft of the London Aero Club had a yellow fuselage (plus yellow struts and wheel caps); those of Newcastle a red one. Green stood for the Midlands and blue for Lancashire. Registration letters were black on the wings and, depending on the club colour, either black or white on the fuselage.
As the Royal Aero Club marketed the idea of flying clubs to other members of the Commonwealth
, the de Havilland Aircraft Company followed suit and soon established subsidiaries in Australia
and Canada
to stock the local flying clubs there with Gipsy Moths. Canadian Moths were offered with a detachable canopy for winter flying. Other factories to licence-build the Gipsy Moth were the Larkin Aircraft Supply Company
in Australia (which built 32 for the RAAF
). Although built for flying clubs rather than for individual air cruising, the Australian Moths were the DH.60 L 'Luxury' version and were delivered with their fuselages sporting the L's characteristic two-tone colour scheme rather than the fuselage entirely painted in the club colour as was customary in British flying clubs. Other manufacturers were Morane-Saulnier
in France (40) and a company called Moth Aircraft Co. in the US (18).
Most Gipsy Moths belonged to flying clubs, but after the Prince of Wales
purchased a Gipsy Moth (G-AALG) for his own private flying, the aircraft became the latest fad for high society
. It did help that the redesigned DH 60L had larger cabin panels that enabled passengers to 'step' into the cockpit instead of sliding into it. The new enlarged luggage locker was also now big enough to store a set of golf clubs. In fact, fairways made great landing fields for those rich enough to belong to both a flying club and a golf club, and golf resorts in the more scenic parts of the UK were great weekend getaways for upper-class sporty young flying lads (and increasingly also sporty young flying ladies).
In addition the Moth was used for many record flights. The ‘Lonely flyer’ Sir Francis Chichester flew his Gipsy Moth from England to Australia, further to New Zealand and then across the Pacific to Japan. Although he originally planned to fly around the Earth, a crash in Japan convinced him to switch to sailing. (Out of respect for his aircraft, he named his yachts ‘Gipsy Moth II’, ‘Gipsy Moth III’ and most famously 'Gypsy Moth IV'.) Of the aviatrixes, London secretary Amy Johnson
flew her Gipsy Moth (G-AAAH "Jason") 11,000 mi (17,703 km) to Australia and Jean Batten
used a Gipsy Moth for her flights from England to India and England to Australia (the aircraft used to fly to India was G-AALG borrowed from the Prince of Wales).
Moth trainers were however ordered by a number of foreign air force
s including those of Argentina, Australia (as noted above), Austria, Norway, Portugal, Sweden and the flying arm of the Danish Navy. Finland licence-built 22 Moth trainers, but equipped them with the old Cirrus engine.
Two Gipsy Moths were purchased by the Paraguayan government during the Chaco War
. They were used as liaison aircraft. One was lost in a fatal accident at Ñu-Guazú Air Force Base and the other survived the war. It was transferred to the Paraguayan Aeroclub in 1936.
The bulk of military Moths however were civilian sportplanes impressed by their countries air forces and used as trainers and liaison aircraft. Like this, civilian Moths ended up flying for both the Nationalist and Republican air forces during the Spanish Civil War
. This was repeated on a larger scale during the Second World War where Moths ended up flying, amongst others, for the air forces of Egypt, New Zealand, China (with several captured ex-Chinese aircraft flying for the Japanese), Ireland, Italy, Iraq, Belgian Congo, Dutch East Indies (later taken over by the Indonesian AF), South Africa, New Zealand and the US Navy.
(Production for all Gipsy I and -II variants: 595 built by de Havilland at Stag Lane Aerodrome
, 40 built by Morane-Saulnier in France, 18 built by the Moth Corporation in the United States, and 32 built by Larkin Aircraft Supply in Australia.)
Note: Variant information taken from Bransom.
Belgian Congo
Burma
Canada
Egypt
Ethiopia
Nazi Germany
Greece
Iraq
South Africa
United States
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
(played by Robert Redford
) over the Kenyan savannah. The real-life Finch-Hatton also piloted a DH 60 Gipsy Moth.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
two-seat touring and training aircraft that was developed into a series of aircraft by the de Havilland Aircraft Company
De Havilland
The de Havilland Aircraft Company was a British aviation manufacturer founded in 1920 when Airco, of which Geoffrey de Havilland had been chief designer, was sold to BSA by the owner George Holt Thomas. De Havilland then set up a company under his name in September of that year at Stag Lane...
.
Development
The DH 60 was developed from the larger DH 51 biplaneBiplane
A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two superimposed main wings. The Wright brothers' Wright Flyer used a biplane design, as did most aircraft in the early years of aviation. While a biplane wing structure has a structural advantage, it produces more drag than a similar monoplane wing...
. The first flight of the Cirrus powered prototype DH.60 Moth (registration G-EBKT) was carried out by Geoffrey de Havilland at the works airfield at Stag Lane
Stag Lane Aerodrome
Stag Lane Aerodrome was a private aerodrome between 1915 and 1933 located in Edgware, London, UK.-History:The land for an aerodrome was purchased by the London & Provincial Aviation Company during October 1915. The company used the aerodrome for flying training during the First World War...
on 22 February 1925. The Moth was a two-seat biplane of wooden construction, it had a plywood covered fuselage and fabric covered surfaces, a standard tailplane with a single tailplane and fin. A useful feature of the design was its folding wings which allowed owners to hangar the aircraft in much smaller spaces. The then Secretary of State for Air
Secretary of State for Air
The Secretary of State for Air was a cabinet level British position. The person holding this position was in charge of the Air Ministry. It was created on 10 January 1919 to manage the Royal Air Force...
Sir Samuel Hoare became interested in the aircraft and the Air Ministry
Air Ministry
The Air Ministry was a department of the British Government with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964...
subsidised five flying clubs and equipped them with Moths. The prototype was modified with a horn balanced rudder, as used on the production aircraft, and was entered into the 1925 King's Cup Race
King's Cup Race
The King's Cup Race is an annual British handicapped cross-country air race, first contested on 8 September 1922. The event was open to British pilots only, but that did include members of the Commonwealth....
flown by Alan Cobham
Alan Cobham
Sir Alan John Cobham, KBE, AFC was an English aviation pioneer.A member of the Royal Flying Corps in World War I, Alan Cobham became famous as a pioneer of long distance aviation. After the war he became a test pilot for the de Havilland aircraft company, and was the first pilot for the newly...
. Deliveries commenced to flying schools in England. One of the early aircraft was fitted with an all-metal twin float landing gear to become the first Moth seaplane. The original production Moths were later known as Cirrus I Moths.
Three aircraft were modified for the 1927 King's Cup Race with internal modifications and a Cirrus II engine on a lowered engine mounting. Originally designated the DH.60X (for experimental) this was soon changed to Cirrus II Moth, the DH.60X designation was re-used in 1928 for the Cirrus III powered version with a split axle. The production run for the DH.60X Moth was short as it was replaced by later variants but it was still available to special order.
Although the Cirrus engine was reliable, its manufacture was not. It depended on components salvaged from World War I–era 8-cylinder Renault engines and therefore its numbers were limited by the stockpiles of surplus Renaults. Therefore, de Havilland decided to replace the Cirrus with a new engine built by his own factory. In 1928 when the new de Havilland Gipsy I
De Havilland Gipsy
The de Havilland Gipsy is a British air-cooled 4-cylinder in-line aircraft engine designed by Frank Halford in 1927 to replace the ADC Cirrus in the de Havilland D.H.60 Moth light biplane....
engine was available a company DH.60 Moth G-EBQH was re-engined as the prototype of the DH.60G Gipsy Moth.
Next to the increase in power, the main advantage of this update was that the Gipsy was a completely new engine available in as great a number as the manufacture of Moths necessitated. The new Gipsy engines could simply be built in-house on a production line side by side with the production line for Moth airframes. This also enabled the de Havilland Aircraft Company to control the complete process of building a Moth airframe, engine and all, streamline productivity and in the end lower manufacturing costs. While the original DH 60 was offered for a relatively modest £650, by 1930 the price of a new Gipsy-powered Moth was still £650, this in spite of its state-of-the-art engine and the effects of inflation
Inflation
In economics, inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time.When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Consequently, inflation also reflects an erosion in the purchasing power of money – a...
.
In 1931 with the upgrade of the Gipsy engine as the Gipsy II, de Havilland inverted the engine and re-designated it the Gipsy III. The engine was fitted into a Moth aircraft, which was re-designated as the DH.60G-III Moth Major. The sub-type was intended for the military trainer market and some of the first aircraft were supplied to the Swedish Air Force. The DH.60T was re-engined with the Gipsy III and was re-designated the DH.60T Tiger Moth. The DH.60T Tiger Moth was modified with swept back mainplanes, the cabane strut
Cabane strut
The cabane struts of a biplane aircraft support the upper wing over the fuselage and work in conjunction with other wing components such as spars and flying wires to transmit flight loads....
s were also moved forward to improve egress from the front cockpit
Cockpit
A cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft, from which a pilot controls the aircraft. Most modern cockpits are enclosed, except on some small aircraft, and cockpits on large airliners are also physically separated from the cabin...
in case of emergency. The changes were considered great enough that the aircraft was re-designated the de Havilland DH.82 Tiger Moth
De Havilland Tiger Moth
The de Havilland DH 82 Tiger Moth is a 1930s biplane designed by Geoffrey de Havilland and was operated by the Royal Air Force and others as a primary trainer. The Tiger Moth remained in service with the RAF until replaced by the de Havilland Chipmunk in 1952, when many of the surplus aircraft...
.
Design
Fuselage
The fuselage is an aircraft's main body section that holds crew and passengers or cargo. In single-engine aircraft it will usually contain an engine, although in some amphibious aircraft the single engine is mounted on a pylon attached to the fuselage which in turn is used as a floating hull...
remained the same as before, the exhaust
Exhaust system
An exhaust system is usually tubing used to guide reaction exhaust gases away from a controlled combustion inside an engine or stove. The entire system conveys burnt gases from the engine and includes one or more exhaust pipes...
still ran alongside the left side of the cockpit
Cockpit
A cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft, from which a pilot controls the aircraft. Most modern cockpits are enclosed, except on some small aircraft, and cockpits on large airliners are also physically separated from the cabin...
s and the logo
Logo
A logo is a graphic mark or emblem commonly used by commercial enterprises, organizations and even individuals to aid and promote instant public recognition...
on the right side still read ‘De Havilland Moth’. The fuel tank was still housed in the bulging airfoil that formed the center section of the upper wing. The wings could still be folded alongside the fuselage and still had de Havilland’s patented differential aileron
Aileron
Ailerons are hinged flight control surfaces attached to the trailing edge of the wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. The ailerons are used to control the aircraft in roll, which results in a change in heading due to the tilting of the lift vector...
s on the bottom mainplanes
Wing
A wing is an appendage with a surface that produces lift for flight or propulsion through the atmosphere, or through another gaseous or liquid fluid...
and no ailerons on the top ones. Colour options still remained as simple as before: wings and tail in ‘Moth silver’, fuselage in the colour the buyer chose.
Operational history
As there was no real comparison between the original DH 60 and the new DH 60G, the Gipsy Moth quickly became the mainstay of BritishUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
flying clubs as the only real recreational aircraft in the UK. By 1929 it was estimated that of every 100 aeroplanes in Britain, 85 were Moths of one type or another, most of them Gipsy Moths. This in spite of the fact that with de Havilland switching from the Cirrus to its own Gipsy engine, surplus Cirrus engines were now pouring into the 'free' market and a trove of Cirrus powered aircraft like the Avro Avian
Avro Avian
The Avro Avian was a series of British light aircraft designed and built by Avro in the 1920s and '30s. While the various versions of the Avian were sound aircraft, they were comprehensively outsold by the de Havilland Moth and its descendants....
, the Klemm Swallow or the Miles Hawk
Miles Hawk
-See also:-Bibliography:* Amos, Peter. and Brown, Don Lambert. Miles Aircraft Since 1925, Volume 1. London: Putnam Aeronautical, 2000. ISBN 0-85177-787-0....
started fighting for their share of the flying club and private market.
Although replaced in production by the DH 60G-III Moth Major and later by the D.H.82 Tiger Moth
Tiger moth
Tiger moths are moths of the family Arctiidae.Tiger moth may also refer to:*de Havilland Tiger Moth, an aircraft; an aerobatic and trainer tailwheel biplane*de Havilland DH.71 Tiger Moth, an earlier monoplane produced by de Havilland...
, the Gipsy Moth remained the mainstay of the British flying scene up to the start of WWII. The war however marked the end of the Gipsy Moth and post-war it was quickly replaced by ex-RAF Tiger Moths pouring into the civilian market.
DH 60 Moth in flying clubs
In retrospect one can say that the first DH.60 arrived at the right spot at the right time: Next to the Moth's maiden flight, 1925 also marked the birth of the first five Royal Aero ClubRoyal Aero Club
The Royal Aero Club is the national co-ordinating body for Air Sport in the United Kingdom.The Aero Club was founded in 1901 by Frank Hedges Butler, his daughter Vera and the Hon Charles Rolls , partly inspired by the Aero Club of France...
flying schools and because of its simplicity and reliable powerplant, the Moth was the aircraft of choice to equip the clubs. Vice versa, the clubs gave de Havilland a secure supply of orders. De Havilland could now use this safety to concentrate on developing the Moth further into a mass-produced mass-market aircraft. So it can be said that the Moth made the Aero Clubs at least just as much as the Aero Clubs made the Moth. Because of this headstart, the Moth became the mainstay of the clubs even long after more modern aircraft became available.
With de Havilland's habit of painting the wings and tailplane of the Moth in silver also came the clubs' habit of distinguishing their aircraft by painting their fuselage in one distinctive club colour. Aircraft of the London Aero Club had a yellow fuselage (plus yellow struts and wheel caps); those of Newcastle a red one. Green stood for the Midlands and blue for Lancashire. Registration letters were black on the wings and, depending on the club colour, either black or white on the fuselage.
As the Royal Aero Club marketed the idea of flying clubs to other members of the Commonwealth
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
, the de Havilland Aircraft Company followed suit and soon established subsidiaries in Australia
De Havilland Australia
De Havilland Aircraft Pty Ltd was part of de Havilland, then became a separate company. It was purchased by Boeing and is now Hawker de Havilland Aerospace Pty Ltd, a subsidiary of Boeing Australia Ltd-Early Years and WWII:...
and Canada
De Havilland Canada
The de Havilland Aircraft of Canada Ltd. company was an aircraft manufacturer with facilities based in what is now the Downsview area of Toronto, Ontario, Canada...
to stock the local flying clubs there with Gipsy Moths. Canadian Moths were offered with a detachable canopy for winter flying. Other factories to licence-build the Gipsy Moth were the Larkin Aircraft Supply Company
Larkin Aircraft Supply Company
The Larkin Aircraft Supply Company was an Australian aircraft manufacturer based at Coode Island in Melbourne.-History:After returning from the First World War Herbert Joseph Larkin, a fighter pilot with the Royal Flying Corps, and his brother Reg Larkin formed an agency for Sopwith aircraft...
in Australia (which built 32 for the RAAF
Royal Australian Air Force
The Royal Australian Air Force is the air force branch of the Australian Defence Force. The RAAF was formed in March 1921. It continues the traditions of the Australian Flying Corps , which was formed on 22 October 1912. The RAAF has taken part in many of the 20th century's major conflicts...
). Although built for flying clubs rather than for individual air cruising, the Australian Moths were the DH.60 L 'Luxury' version and were delivered with their fuselages sporting the L's characteristic two-tone colour scheme rather than the fuselage entirely painted in the club colour as was customary in British flying clubs. Other manufacturers were Morane-Saulnier
Morane-Saulnier
Aéroplanes Morane-Saulnier is a French aircraft manufacturing company formed in October 1911 by Raymond Saulnier and the Morane brothers, Leon and Robert...
in France (40) and a company called Moth Aircraft Co. in the US (18).
DH 60 Moth in private use
Edward VIII of the United Kingdom
Edward VIII was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth, and Emperor of India, from 20 January to 11 December 1936.Before his accession to the throne, Edward was Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall and Rothesay...
purchased a Gipsy Moth (G-AALG) for his own private flying, the aircraft became the latest fad for high society
Upper class
In social science, the "upper class" is the group of people at the top of a social hierarchy. Members of an upper class may have great power over the allocation of resources and governmental policy in their area.- Historical meaning :...
. It did help that the redesigned DH 60L had larger cabin panels that enabled passengers to 'step' into the cockpit instead of sliding into it. The new enlarged luggage locker was also now big enough to store a set of golf clubs. In fact, fairways made great landing fields for those rich enough to belong to both a flying club and a golf club, and golf resorts in the more scenic parts of the UK were great weekend getaways for upper-class sporty young flying lads (and increasingly also sporty young flying ladies).
In addition the Moth was used for many record flights. The ‘Lonely flyer’ Sir Francis Chichester flew his Gipsy Moth from England to Australia, further to New Zealand and then across the Pacific to Japan. Although he originally planned to fly around the Earth, a crash in Japan convinced him to switch to sailing. (Out of respect for his aircraft, he named his yachts ‘Gipsy Moth II’, ‘Gipsy Moth III’ and most famously 'Gypsy Moth IV'.) Of the aviatrixes, London secretary Amy Johnson
Amy Johnson
Amy Johnson CBE, was a pioneering English aviator. Flying solo or with her husband, Jim Mollison, Johnson set numerous long-distance records during the 1930s...
flew her Gipsy Moth (G-AAAH "Jason") 11,000 mi (17,703 km) to Australia and Jean Batten
Jean Batten
Jean Gardner Batten CBE OSC was a New Zealand aviatrix. Born in Rotorua, she became the best-known New Zealander of the 1930s, internationally, by taking a number of record-breaking solo flights across the world....
used a Gipsy Moth for her flights from England to India and England to Australia (the aircraft used to fly to India was G-AALG borrowed from the Prince of Wales).
DH 60 Moth in military service
Although the DH 60T was aggressively marketed as a military trainer, response was rather lukewarm. In particular the RAF only purchased a handful of aircraft for testing and found that many aspects of the Moth did not suit their method of military flight training.Moth trainers were however ordered by a number of foreign air force
Air force
An air force, also known in some countries as an air army, is in the broadest sense, the national military organization that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army, navy or...
s including those of Argentina, Australia (as noted above), Austria, Norway, Portugal, Sweden and the flying arm of the Danish Navy. Finland licence-built 22 Moth trainers, but equipped them with the old Cirrus engine.
Two Gipsy Moths were purchased by the Paraguayan government during the Chaco War
Chaco War
The Chaco War was fought between Bolivia and Paraguay over control of the northern part of the Gran Chaco region of South America, which was incorrectly thought to be rich in oil. It is also referred to as La Guerra de la Sed in literary circles for being fought in the semi-arid Chaco...
. They were used as liaison aircraft. One was lost in a fatal accident at Ñu-Guazú Air Force Base and the other survived the war. It was transferred to the Paraguayan Aeroclub in 1936.
The bulk of military Moths however were civilian sportplanes impressed by their countries air forces and used as trainers and liaison aircraft. Like this, civilian Moths ended up flying for both the Nationalist and Republican air forces during the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
. This was repeated on a larger scale during the Second World War where Moths ended up flying, amongst others, for the air forces of Egypt, New Zealand, China (with several captured ex-Chinese aircraft flying for the Japanese), Ireland, Italy, Iraq, Belgian Congo, Dutch East Indies (later taken over by the Indonesian AF), South Africa, New Zealand and the US Navy.
Variants
(Variants are listed in chronological order)- DH 60 Cirrus Moth
- Prototype and early production aircraft powered by a 60 hp ADC CirrusADC Cirrus-See also:-Bibliography:* Gunston, Bill. World Encyclopaedia of Aero Engines. Cambridge, England. Patrick Stephens Limited, 1989. ISBN 1-85260-163-9...
engine. 8 pre-production and 31 production aircraft built.- DH 60 Cirrus II Moth. (also known as the Hermes Moth).
- Introduced in 1927 this variant had a slightly larger wingspan and decreased distance between the upper and lower wings. Powered by an uprated (105 hp/78 kW) Cirrus Hermes engine, 32 built.
- DH 60 Genet Moth
- A small number of DH 60 Moths were fitted with the Armstrong Siddeley GenetArmstrong Siddeley Genet-Bibliography:* Lumsden, Alec. British Piston Engines and their Aircraft. Marlborough, Wiltshire: Airlife Publishing, 2003. ISBN 1-85310-294-6.-External links:*...
radial engine. The type was used by the Royal Air ForceRoyal Air ForceThe Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
Central Flying SchoolCentral Flying SchoolThe Central Flying School is the Royal Air Force's primary institution for the training of military flying instructors. Established in 1912 it is the longest existing flying training school.-History:...
for display purposes, six built.- DH 60G Gipsy Moth.
- First major overhaul of the design: Cirrus engine replaced by a 100 hpHorsepowerHorsepower is the name of several units of measurement of power. The most common definitions equal between 735.5 and 750 watts.Horsepower was originally defined to compare the output of steam engines with the power of draft horses in continuous operation. The unit was widely adopted to measure the...
(75 kW) de Havilland GipsyDe Havilland GipsyThe de Havilland Gipsy is a British air-cooled 4-cylinder in-line aircraft engine designed by Frank Halford in 1927 to replace the ADC Cirrus in the de Havilland D.H.60 Moth light biplane....
I engine.- DH 60GII (GipsyII Moth).
- Powered by a 120 hp Gipsy II. Commonly referred to as a 'Gipsy Moth' just like the 100 hp version.
- DH 60X
- Optional 'X' braced undercarriage version of the early Gipsy Moth. (X-style undercarriage became standard for the DH 60M and all subsequent models)
- DH 60L (Luxury)
- Offered with wider let-down cockpit doors and an enlarged luggage locker behind the rear cockpit. The luxury version also featured a state-of-the-art 1930's style two-color paint scheme for the fuselage.
- DH 60M Moth (Metal Moth)
- The original plywood box fuselage replaced with a construction of metal stringers covered with doped fabric. Although overall weight increased, maintenance became easier and metal fuselages became standard for all later versions. Four pre-production aircraft, 536 built by de Havilland at Stag Lane, 40 built by de Havilland Canada, 161 built by the Moth Corporation in the United States, 10 built by the Norwegian Army Aircraft Factory in Norway.
- DH 60T (Moth Trainer)
- Trainer variant of the Metal-Gipsy Moth. Rearranging of the inner wing bracing wires allowed for easier access to the front cockpit, a necessity for military pilots wearing parachutes. 2 prototypes and 47 production aircraft.
(Production for all Gipsy I and -II variants: 595 built by de Havilland at Stag Lane Aerodrome
Stag Lane Aerodrome
Stag Lane Aerodrome was a private aerodrome between 1915 and 1933 located in Edgware, London, UK.-History:The land for an aerodrome was purchased by the London & Provincial Aviation Company during October 1915. The company used the aerodrome for flying training during the First World War...
, 40 built by Morane-Saulnier in France, 18 built by the Moth Corporation in the United States, and 32 built by Larkin Aircraft Supply in Australia.)
- DH 60GIII Moth
- In 1931 the company took a de Havilland Gipsy II engine and turned it upside down and re-designated it the Gipsy III, this engine was then fitted to the Moth to create the DG 60GIII Moth, 57 built including ten as fuselages for the Royal Air Force as Queen Bee target drones.
- DH 60GIII Moth Major
- In 1934 from the 58th DH 60GIII onwards, the engine name was changed to Gipsy Major and the resulting variant was renamed the DH 60G III Moth Major. 96 were built including ten as fuselages for the Royal Air Force as Queen Bee target drones, production ending in May 1935. A final Moth Major was built by the de Havilland Technical School, giving total production of the DH 60GIII of 154.
- DH 60T (Tiger Moth Prototypes)
- Eight prototypes with swept wings for a proposed RAFRoyal Air ForceThe Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
trainer. Because of the substantial changes, the aircraft entered production as the DH 82 Tiger MothDe Havilland Tiger MothThe de Havilland DH 82 Tiger Moth is a 1930s biplane designed by Geoffrey de Havilland and was operated by the Royal Air Force and others as a primary trainer. The Tiger Moth remained in service with the RAF until replaced by the de Havilland Chipmunk in 1952, when many of the surplus aircraft...
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Note: Variant information taken from Bransom.
Military operators
- Royal Australian Air ForceRoyal Australian Air ForceThe Royal Australian Air Force is the air force branch of the Australian Defence Force. The RAAF was formed in March 1921. It continues the traditions of the Australian Flying Corps , which was formed on 22 October 1912. The RAAF has taken part in many of the 20th century's major conflicts...
- Austrian Air Force (1927-1938)Austrian Air Force (1927-1938)The Austrian Air Force of the interwar period began as a paramilitary organisation and was secretly built up by the government before union with Germany .- History :...
- Belgium Air Force - Postwar, one aircraft.
Belgian Congo
- Force PubliqueForce PubliqueThe Force Publique , French for "Public Force", was both a gendarmerie and a military force in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1885, , through the period of direct Belgian colonial rule...
Burma
- Burma Volunteer Air Force - One aircraft only.
- Brazilian Air ForceBrazilian Air ForceThe Brazilian Air Force is the air branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces and one of the three national uniformed services. The FAB was formed when the Army and Navy air branch were merged into a single military force initially called "National Air Forces"...
- Brazilian ArmyBrazilian ArmyThe Brazilian Army is the land arm of the Brazilian Military. The Brazilian Army has fought in several international conflicts, mostly in South America and during the 19th century, such as the Brazilian War of Independence , Argentina-Brazil War , War of the Farrapos , Platine War , Uruguayan War ...
- Brazilian NavyBrazilian NavyThe Brazilian Navy is a branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces responsible for conducting naval operations. It is the largest navy in Latin America...
Canada
- Royal Canadian Air ForceRoyal Canadian Air ForceThe history of the Royal Canadian Air Force begins in 1920, when the air force was created as the Canadian Air Force . In 1924 the CAF was renamed the Royal Canadian Air Force and granted royal sanction by King George V. The RCAF existed as an independent service until 1968...
- Chinese Nationalist Air Force
- Chilean Air ForceChilean Air ForceThe Chilean Air Force is the air force of Chile, a branch of the Chilean military.-History:The first step towards the current FACh was taken by Teniente Coronel Pedro Pablo Dartnell, when he founded the Servicio de Aviación Militar de Chile on December 20, 1910, being trained as a pilot in France...
- Cuban Navy
- Danish Army Flying CorpsRoyal Danish Air ForceThe Royal Danish Air Force is the air force of Denmark with the capability to undertake homeland defense and homeland security roles as well international operations.-History:...
- Danish Naval Air Service
Egypt
- Royal Egyptian Air Force
Ethiopia
- Imperial Ethiopian Air ForceEthiopian Air ForceThe Ethiopian Air Force is the air arm of the Ethiopian National Defense Forces and is tasked with protecting the air space, providing support to the ground forces as well as assisting during national emergencies.- Early years :...
- Finnish Air ForceFinnish Air ForceThe Finnish Air Force is one of the branches of the Finnish Defence Forces. Its peacetime tasks are airspace surveillance, identification flights, and production of readiness formations for wartime conditions...
Nazi Germany
- LuftwaffeLuftwaffeLuftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
(small numbers)
Greece
- Hellenic Air ForceHellenic Air ForceThe Hellenic Air Force, abbreviated to HAF is the air force of Greece. The mission of the Hellenic Air Force is to guard and protect Greek airspace, provide air assistance and support to the Hellenic Army and the Hellenic Navy, as well as the provision of humanitarian aid in Greece and around the...
- Hungarian Air ForceHungarian Air ForceThe Hungarian Air Force is the air force branch of the Hungarian Army.- 1918 to Pre–World War II :Following the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy in 1918, a small air arm was established operating surviving aircraft from Hungarian factories and training schools...
- Irish Air CorpsIrish Air CorpsThe Air Corps is the air component of the Defence Forces of Ireland providing support to the Army and Naval Service, together with non-military air services such as search and rescue and the Ministerial Air Transport Service...
Iraq
- Iraqi Air ForceIraqi Air ForceThe Iraqi Air Force or IQAF is the military branch in Iraq responsible for the policing of international borders, surveillance of national assets and aerial operations...
- Royal Norwegian Air ForceRoyal Norwegian Air ForceThe Royal Norwegian Air Force is the air force of Norway. It was established as a separate arm of the Norwegian armed forces on 10 November 1944. The RNoAF's peace force is approximately 1,430 employees . 600 personnel also serve their draft period in the RNoAF...
- New Zealand Permanent Air Force
- Royal New Zealand Air ForceRoyal New Zealand Air ForceThe Royal New Zealand Air Force is the air arm of the New Zealand Defence Force...
- No. 4 Squadron RNZAFNo. 4 Squadron RNZAFNo. 4 Squadron RNZAF was a New Zealand patrol bomber unit in the South Pacific during World War II.-History:Due to activity by German surface raiders, the squadron was hurriedly formed in October 1940, initially equipped with a range of hurriedly converted civilian airliners, the twin engined de...
- No. 4 Squadron RNZAF
- Paraguayan Air Arm
- Transport Squadron during the Chaco WarChaco WarThe Chaco War was fought between Bolivia and Paraguay over control of the northern part of the Gran Chaco region of South America, which was incorrectly thought to be rich in oil. It is also referred to as La Guerra de la Sed in literary circles for being fought in the semi-arid Chaco...
- Transport Squadron during the Chaco War
- Polish Air ForcePolish Air ForceThe Polish Air Force is the military Air Force wing of the Polish Armed Forces. Until July 2004 it was officially known as Wojska Lotnicze i Obrony Powietrznej...
- Portuguese NavyPortuguese NavyThe Portuguese Navy is the naval branch of the Portuguese Armed Forces which, in cooperation and integrated with the other branches of the Portuguese military, is charged with the military defence of Portugal....
- Royal Romanian Air ForceRoyal Romanian Air ForceThe Forţele Aeriene Regale ale României , or simply Forţele Aeriene Române was the Air Arm of Royal Romanian forces in World War II...
South Africa
- South African Air ForceSouth African Air ForceThe South African Air Force is the air force of South Africa, with headquarters in Pretoria. It is the world's second oldest independent air force, and its motto is Per Aspera Ad Astra...
- Spanish Republican Air ForceSpanish Republican Air ForceThe Spanish Republican Air Force, , was the air arm of the Second Spanish Republic, the legally established government of Spain between 1931 and 1939...
- Spanish Air ForceSpanish Air Force-The early stages:Hot air balloons had been used with military purposes in Spain as far back as 1896. In 1905, with the help of Alfredo Kindelán, Leonardo Torres y Quevedo directed the construction of the first Spanish dirigible in the Army Military Aerostatics Service, created in 1896 and located...
- Royal Swedish Air Force
- Royal Air ForceRoyal Air ForceThe Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
- No. 24 Squadron RAF
- No. 173 Squadron RAFNo. 173 Squadron RAFNo. 173 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force Squadron that was a communications unit in World War II.-Formation in World War II:The squadron formed on 9 July 1942 at Heliopolis, Egypt and equipped with the Hawker Audax and it went on to operate many other types of aircraft...
- No. 510 Squadron RAFNo. 510 Squadron RAFNo. 510 Squadron was a Royal Air Force transport and liaison aircraft squadron that operated during the Second World War.-History:During 1942 it was decided that 24 Squadron was too large and the internal communication flight became no. 510 Squadron on 15 October 1942 at RAF Hendon...
United States
- United States NavyUnited States NavyThe United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
- Royal Yugoslav Air Force
- Yugoslav Royal NavyYugoslav Royal NavyThe Royal Yugoslav Navy was the navy of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.This navy existed since the establishment of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes in 1918, which was changed in 1929 to the Kingdom of Yugoslavia...
Survivors
- There are currently 31 de Havilland DH 60 Moths on the UK aircraft register (as of 7 July 2011).
- A DH 60, G-EBWD, flies regularly during displays at the Shuttleworth CollectionShuttleworth CollectionThe Shuttleworth Collection is an aeronautical and automotive museum located at the Old Warden airfield in Bedfordshire, England. It is one of the most prestigious in the world due to the variety of old and well-preserved aircraft.- History :...
near Old WardenOld WardenOld Warden is a village and civil parish in Bedfordshire, England, just west of the town of Biggleswade. It has a population of 275. The village grew up under the protection of the Cistercian Wardon or Warden Abbey nearby....
, BedfordshireBedfordshireBedfordshire is a ceremonial county of historic origin in England that forms part of the East of England region.It borders Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the west and Hertfordshire to the south-east....
, England. This Moth was originally Richard Shuttleworth's own private plane and during its career was extensively modified with an original Cirrus Hermes engine but an x-legged undercarriage and different windshields on the front and rear cockpit.
Aircraft on display
The following DH 60 Moth aircraft are on public display in museums:- DH 60G Gipsy Moth, G-AAAH, Jason used by Amy JohnsonAmy JohnsonAmy Johnson CBE, was a pioneering English aviator. Flying solo or with her husband, Jim Mollison, Johnson set numerous long-distance records during the 1930s...
is on static display at the London Science MuseumScience Museum (London)The Science Museum is one of the three major museums on Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is part of the National Museum of Science and Industry. The museum is a major London tourist attraction....
. - DH 60G Gipsy Moth, formerly CC-FNG now dressed as 'LAN 32' at Museo Nacional Aeronáutico y del Espacio de Chile, ChileChileChile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
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Appearances in Popular Culture
The DH 60 Gipsy Moth was used in the 1970s Sydney Pollack film Out of Africa (film), flown by the character Denys Finch HattonDenys Finch Hatton
Denys George Finch Hatton was a big-game hunter, and the lover of Karen Blixen , who wrote about him in her autobiographical book Out of Africa first published in 1937...
(played by Robert Redford
Robert Redford
Charles Robert Redford, Jr. , better known as Robert Redford, is an American actor, film director, producer, businessman, environmentalist, philanthropist, and founder of the Sundance Film Festival. He has received two Oscars: one in 1981 for directing Ordinary People, and one for Lifetime...
) over the Kenyan savannah. The real-life Finch-Hatton also piloted a DH 60 Gipsy Moth.