| DH.82 Tiger Moth | |
|---|---|
 A Tiger Moth in 1989 | |
| General information | |
| Type | Trainer |
| Manufacturer | de Havilland Aircraft Company de Havilland Canada |
| Designer | |
| Status | In service for civil use |
| Primary users | Royal Air Force |
| Number built | 8,868[1] |
| History | |
| Manufactured | 1931–1944 |
| Introduction date | February 1932[2] |
| First flight | 26 October 1931 |
| Retired | 1959 |
| Developed from | de Havilland DH.60 Moth |
| Variant | Thruxton Jackaroo |
Thede Havilland DH.82 Tiger Moth is a 1930s Britishbiplane designed byGeoffrey de Havilland and built by thede Havilland Aircraft Company. It was operated by theRoyal Air Force (RAF) and other operators as a primarytrainer aircraft. In addition to the type's principal use forab initio training, theSecond World War had RAF Tiger Moths operating in other capacities, includingmaritime surveillance and defensive anti-invasion preparations; some aircraft were even outfitted to function as armedlight bombers.
The Tiger Moth remained in service with the RAF until it was replaced by thede Havilland Chipmunk during the early 1950s. Many of the military surplus aircraft subsequently entered into civilian operation. Many nations have used the Tiger Moth in both military and civilian applications, and it remains in widespread use as a recreational aircraft. It is still occasionally used as a primary training aircraft, particularly for pilots wanting to gain experience before moving on to othertailwheel aircraft. Many Tiger Moths are now employed by companies offering trial lesson experiences.
Geoffrey de Havilland, the company's owner and founder, had sought to produce a light aircraft superior to two of his previous designs, thede Havilland Humming Bird andde Havilland DH.51.[3] From earlier experience, de Havilland knew the difficulty and importance of correctly sizing such an aircraft to appeal to the civilian market, such as touring,trainer,flying club, andprivate aviation customers; the firm had great success with a scaled-down version of the DH.51, thede Havilland DH.60 Moth.[3]
The first aircraft to bear the name Tiger Moth was thede Havilland DH.71 Tiger Moth.[4] De Havilland had developed successively more capableGipsy engines, and the company had produced the new low-wingedmonoplane aircraft to test them.[5] Improvements made on the Tiger Moth monoplane were incorporated into a military trainer variant of the DH.60 Moth, the DH.60T Moth – theT standing for both 'Tiger' and 'Trainer'.[4]
The DH.60T Moth had several shortcomings, thus was subject to several alterations, such as the adoption of shortened interplane struts to raise the wingtips after insufficient ground clearance was discovered while it was undergoing trials atRAF Martlesham Heath.[4] As a result of the Martlesham trials, a favourable report for the type was produced, which in turn led to the type soon being formally adopted as the new basic trainer of theRoyal Air Force (RAF). A single prototype, designated the DH.82 Tiger Moth, was ordered by the BritishAir Ministry underSpecification 15/31, which sought a suitableab initio training aircraft.[4]
One of the main changes from the preceding Moth series was improved access to the frontcockpit, since the training requirement specified that the front-seat occupant had to be able to escape easily, especially when wearing aparachute.[6][4] Access to the front cockpit of the Moth's predecessors was restricted by the proximity of the aircraft's fuel tank, directly above the front cockpit, and the rearcabane struts for the upper wing. The solution adopted was to shift the upper wing forward but sweep the wings back to maintain the same centre of lift.[7][4] Other changes included a strengthened structure, fold-down doors on both sides of the cockpit, and a revised exhaust system.[6]
On 26 October 1931 the first 'true' Tiger Moth, the prototypeE6, made itsmaiden flight atStag Lane Aerodrome,Edgware, London, flown by de Havilland Chief Test PilotHubert Broad .[8][4] Shortly thereafter construction of the first 35 production aircraft for the RAF, designatedK2567-K2601, began following the issuing ofSpecification T.23/31; in addition twofloat-equippedseaplanes,S1675 andS1676, were built according to Specification T.6/33.[4]
The de Havilland DH.82 Tiger Moth is asingle-engined,biplane,taildraggeraircraft with two seats intandem configuration. It was developed principally to be used by private touring customers as well as for pilot instruction for both military and civilian operators. It is typically powered by ade Havilland Gipsy III 120 hp engine; later models are often fitted with more powerful models of this engine, while some have been re-engined by third-party companies.
One characteristic of the Tiger Moth design is its differentialaileron control setup. The ailerons (on the lower wing only) on a Tiger Moth are operated by an externally mounted circular bell crank, which lies flush with the lower wing's fabric undersurface covering. This circular bell crank is rotated by metal cables and chains from the cockpit's control columns, and has the externally mounted aileron pushrod attached at a point 45° outboard and forward of the bell crank's centre when the ailerons are both at their neutral position. This results in an aileron control system operating with barely any travel down at all on the wing on the outside of the turn, while the aileron on the inside travels a large amount upwards to counteractadverse yaw.
From the outset, the Tiger Moth proved to be an ideal trainer, simple and cheap to own and maintain, although control movements required a positive and sure hand as a slowness to control inputs existed. Some instructors preferred these flight characteristics because of the effect of "weeding out" the inept student pilot.[9]
The Tiger Moth quickly became a commercial success, and examples were sold to more than 25 air forces.[4] In addition to the military demand, aircraft were also produced for the civilian market. At one point, the flow of orders for the Tiger Moth effectively occupied almost the entirety of de Havilland's capacity to manufacture aircraft, and little capacity could be spared to accommodate domestic customers.[10] In 1932, de Havilland also developed an affordable air taxi from the Tiger Moth, using many of the main components of the former with a new plywood fuselage seating four people in an enclosed cabin; it was marketed as thede Havilland Fox Moth.[11] Following the end of all manufacturing, third parties occasionally rebuilt Tiger Moths to a similar configuration to the Fox Moth, such as theThruxton Jackaroo.[12]
In late 1934, 50 Tiger Moths of a more refined design, sometimes referred to as the Tiger Moth II, were delivered to the RAF; these aircraft adopted thede Havilland Gipsy Major engine, capable of generating 130 HP, and the use ofplywood decking on the rear fuselage in place of fabric .[13] Throughout the period 1934–1936, production activity was centred upon meeting the demand for military trainers, including several contracts having been placed by the RAF to Specification T.7/35, along with export orders by seven overseas operators.[14] Civil examples were also being produced at this time, both for British private customers and to export customers in countries such asCeylon,Greece,Lithuania,Rhodesia,Peru, andSwitzerland.[15]
After 1936, the gradual rate of acceleration of Tiger Moth manufacturing had reached the point where production capacity finally became able to exceed the demands from military customers alone.[16] By the outbreak of theSecond World War a total of 1,424 Tiger Moths had been completed by both domestic and overseas manufacturing efforts.[17] In 1941 de Havilland transferred principal manufacturing activity for the Tiger Moth from itsHatfield factory toMorris Motors Limited at their facility inCowley, Oxford.[18]
In 1945, British Tiger Moth production was ended; by this point, Morris Motors had completed a total of 3,433 Tiger Moths.[18]
Overseas manufacturing of the type commenced in 1937; the first such overseas builder wasde Havilland Canada at its facility inDownsview, Ontario. In addition to an initial batch of 25 Tiger Moths that were built for theRoyal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), the Canadian firm began building fuselages, which were exported to the UK for completion.[17] Canadian-built Tiger Moths featured modifications to better suit the local climate, along with a reinforced tail wheel, hand-operated brakes (built byBendix Corporation), shorterundercarriage radius rods, and the legs of the main landing gear legs being raked forwards as a safeguard against tipping forwards during braking. In addition, the cockpit had a large sliding canopy fitted along withexhaust-based heating; various alternative undercarriage arrangements were also offered.[19] By the end of Canadian production, de Havilland Canada had manufactured a total of 1,548 of all versions, including the DH.82C and AmericanMenasco Pirate-engined variants (with opposing "right-hand"/"counter-clockwise" rotation to the left-hand/clockwise-running Gipsy Major) known as the Menasco Moth; this also included 200 Tiger Moths that were built under wartimeUnited States Army Air Forces (USAAF)Lend-Lease orders, which were designated for paperwork purposes as the PT-24, before being delivered onwards to the RCAF.
Additional overseas manufacturing activity also occurred, most of which took place during wartime.de Havilland Australia assembled an initial batch of 20 aircraft from parts sent from the United Kingdom prior to embarking on their own major production campaign of the DH.82A, which resulted in a total of 1,070 Tiger Moths being constructed in Australia.[18] In late 1940, the first Australian-assembled Tiger Moth conducted its first flight atBankstown,Sydney. Most Australian aircraft were delivered to theRoyal Australian Air Force (RAAF), but several batches were exported, including 18 for the USAAF and 41 for theRoyal Indian Air Force.[18]
In New Zealand, 132 Tiger Moths were completed byde Havilland Aircraft of New Zealand;[20] 23 were built in Sweden as the Sk.11' byAB Svenska Järnvägsverkstädernas Aeroplanavdelning, 91 were built in Portugal byOGMA, and another 38 in Norway byKjeller Flyfabrikk (some sources say 37 so the first may have been assembled from a kit) in addition to a large number of aircraft that were assembled from kits shipped from the UK.[20][21][18]
The RAF ordered 35 dual-control Tiger Moth Is, which had the company designation DH.82.[22] A subsequent order was placed for 50 aircraft powered by the de Havilland Gipsy Major I engine (130 hp) which was the DH.82A or to the RAF Tiger Moth II. The Tiger Moth entered service at theRAF Central Flying School in February 1932. During the prewar years, increasing numbers of Tiger Moths were procured for the RAF and by overseas customers; by 1939, nearly 40 flying schools operating the type had been established, nine of which operated civilian-register models, as well.[23]
From 1937 onwards, the Tiger Moth was made available to general flying clubs, production having been previously occupied by military customers. The type was used to replace older aircraft in the civilian trainer capacity, such as the olderde Havilland Cirrus Moth and Gipsy Moth.[16] By the start of the Second World War, the RAF had around 500 Tiger Moths in service. In addition, nearly all civilian-operated Tiger Moths throughout theCommonwealth were quickly impressed into their respective air forces to meet the wartime demand for trainer aircraft.[17]
The Tiger Moth became the primary trainer throughout the Commonwealth and elsewhere. It was the principal type used in the BritishCommonwealth Air Training Plan, where thousands of military pilots got their first taste of flight in a Tiger Moth. The RAF found the Tiger Moth's handling ideal for training fighter pilots. Generally docile and forgiving in the normal flight phases encountered during initial training, when used for aerobatic and formation training, the Tiger Moth required skill and concentration to perform well; a botched manoeuvre could cause the aircraft to stall or spin. From 1941 onwards, all military and many civilian Tiger Moths were outfitted with antispinstrakes positioned on the junction between the fuselage and theleading edge of the tailplane, known as Mod 11'; later on, theaileron mass balances were removed for improved spin recovery performance.[17]
In 1935, theDH.82 Queen Bee, apilotless, radio-controlled variant of the Tiger Moth, appeared for use in training antiaircraft gunners. Use of the worddrone, as a generic term for pilotless aircraft, apparently originated from the name and role of the Queen Bee (i.e. the word drone is a reference to the male bee, which makes one flight in search of the female queen bee and then subsequently dies).[24][25] The DH.82 had a wooden fuselage, based on that of the DH.60 Gipsy Moth (with appropriate structural changes related tocabane strut placement) and the wings of the Tiger Moth II.[26] Queen Bees retained a normal front cockpit for test-flying orferry flights, but had a radio-control system in the rear cockpit to operate the controls using pneumatically drivenservos.
In total, 400 were built by de Havilland at Hatfield and a further 70 byScottish Aviation.[27] There were nearly 300 in service at the start of the Second World War.
In December 1939, owing to a shortage ofmaritime patrol aircraft, sixflights of Tiger Moths were operated byRAF Coastal Command for surveillance flights over coastal waters, known as "scarecrow patrols". The aircraft operated in pairs and were armed only with aVery pistol. The intention was to force any encroachingU-boat to dive; one aircraft would then remain in the vicinity while the other would search for a naval patrol vessel that could be led back to the spot.[28] Because they were not radio equipped, each aircraft also carried a pair ofhoming pigeons in a wicker basket to call for help in case of a forced landing at sea. A 25-lb (11.5 kg) bomb was sometimes carried, but no record shows one being dropped in action.[29]
In the aftermath of Britain's disastrous campaign in France, in August 1940 three proposals for beach defence systems were put forward; 350 Tiger Moths were fitted with bomb racks to serve as light bombers as a part ofOperation Banquet. A more radical conversion involved the "paraslasher", a scythe-like blade fitted to a Tiger Moth and intended to cutparachutists' canopies as they descended. Flight tests proved the idea, but it was not officially adopted. The Tiger Moth was also tested as a dispenser ofParis green rat poison for use against ground troops, with powder dispensers located under the wings.[30]
In the postwar climate, impressed Tiger Moths were restored to their former civilian operations and owners.[31] Accordingly, large numbers of Tiger Moths were made available for sale to flying clubs and individuals. Relatively few new light aircraft were being manufactured at the time to take its place.[32] Due to the type being inexpensive to operate and the aforementioned factors, the Tiger Moth was met with an enthusiastic reception across the civilian market. Additionally, it was put to use for new roles, including aerial advertising, aerial ambulance, aerobatic performer, crop dusting, and glider tug work.[31]
In the air-racing market, Tiger Moths were converted to a single-seat configuration, often temporarily.[33] Several aircraft were extensively modified for greater speed; these changes included alterations such as the removal of the centre-section fuel tank,alternative fuel tank configurations, all-new elevators, custom-designedfuel injectors, and the recovering of the fuselage with lighter-weight fabric.[34] Three particular aircraft,G-APDZ,G-ANZZ andG-ANMZ, were accordingly rebuilt and were used in international competitions; the design changes led to substantially improved performance during inverted flight.[35]
Ex-RAF examples were imported to the Netherlands during the postwar era and used to equip the Dutch National Flying School atYpenburg.[36] These aircraft were required by the Dutch civil aviation authorities to be fitted with a larger dorsal fin, incorporating an extended forward fillet to the fin, to provide for additional area; this requirement was also extended to privately owned Tiger Moths in the Netherlands.[35]
The Tiger Moth might be confused at first glance with the Belgian-designedStampe SV.4 aerobatic aircraft, which had a very similar design layout; both aircraft made use of a similar main landing gear configuration, a slightly sweepback wing, and an alike engine/cowling design. Several Tiger Moths were converted during the 1950s to aCoupe standard, which involved the installation of a sliding canopy over both crew positions, not unlike the Canadian-builtFleet Finch biplane trainers that had worked beside the Tiger Moth in RCAF service as trainers in Canada during the type's wartime years.[33]
After the development ofaerial topdressing in New Zealand, large numbers of ex-Royal New Zealand Air Force Tiger Moths built in that country and in the United Kingdom were converted intoagricultural aircraft; at the time, this was a pioneering use for aircraft.[31] In this role, the front seat was commonly replaced with a hopper to holdsuperphosphate for aerial topdressing. A large number were also used to deployinsecticide in the crop-sprayer role, for which several alternative arrangements, including perforated piping being installed underneath the mainplanes or the placement of rotary atomisers on the lower mainplane, were used.[31]
Royal Navy Tiger Moths used as target tugs and "air experience" machines became the last military examples when that service purchased a batch of refurbished ex-civilian examples in 1956.[37] One became the last biplane to land on an aircraft carrier (HMS Eagle) in theEnglish Channel during the summer of 1967. On takeoff, the wind over the deck allowed the aircraft to fly, but it was slower than the carrier, which turned hard to starboard to avoid a possible collision.[citation needed] These planes remained in service until the early 1970s.[citation needed]
The Tiger Moth (and to a lesser extent, the similar BelgianStampe-Vertongen SV.4) had been often used as a stand-in for rarer aircraft in films, sometimes having been extensively modified to outwardly resemble the aircraft it was depicting.[38] Three aircraft were converted byCroydon-based Film Aviation Services Ltd for use in the filming of the 1962 movieLawrence of Arabia; one Tiger Moth became a replica of aFokker D.VII, while two aircraft resembled theRumpler C.V to depict these types for the film.[38] Several Tiger Moths were used in the crash scenes inThe Great Waldo Pepper, standing in for theCurtiss JN-1.[citation needed] Due to the popularity of the design and the rising cost of flyable examples, a number of replicas (scale and full-sized) have been designed for the homebuilder; these include theFisher R-80 Tiger Moth and theRagWing RW22 Tiger Moth.[citation needed]
The Tiger Moth responds well to control inputs and is fairly easy to fly for a tail-dragger. Its big "parachute" wings are very forgiving, and it stalls at a speed as slow as 25 knots with power. Its stall and spin characteristics are benign. It has some adverse yaw and therefore requires rudder input during turns.[39] The Tiger Moth exhibits the fundamental requirements of a training aircraft, in being "easy to fly, but difficult to fly well"; the aircraft's benign handling when within its limits make it easy for the novice to learn the basic skills of flight. At the same time techniques such ascoordinated flight must be learnt and used effectively, and the aircraft will show up mishandling to an observant instructor or attentive pupil. As training progresses towards more advanced areas, especiallyaerobatics, the skill required on the part of a Tiger Moth pilot increases. The aircraft will not, like some training aircraft, "fly its way out of trouble" but will instead stall or spin if mishandled. However the stall and spin remain benign, again showing up deficient piloting without endangering the aircraft or the crew. These characteristics were invaluable to military operators, who must identify between pilots with the potential to go on to flyfighter aircraft, those more suited to lower-performance machines and those who must be relegated to non-pilot aircrew positions.[citation needed]
Because the Tiger Moth has no electrical system, it must be started by hand. Being a tail-dragging biplane, taxiing also requires care. The pilot cannot see directly ahead, so the lower wing can hit obstructions, and it is susceptible to gusts of wind on its inclined, large, upper wing.[39]
The takeoff is uneventful, and it has a reasonable rate of climb. However full power should not be maintained for more than a minute to avoid damaging the engine.[39]
The Tiger Moth's biplane design makes it strong, and it is fully aerobatic. However it has ailerons only on its bottom wing, which makes its rate of roll relatively slow for a biplane; and, as stated previously, the ailerons on a Tiger Moth normally operate with a heavy degree of designed-in differential operation (mostly deflecting up, hardly at all downwards) to avoidadverse yaw problems in normal flight. Most manoeuvres are started at about 90 to 110 knots, and it has a Velocity Never Exceeded (VNE) of 140 knots. It is important to lock the automatic slats (leading edge flaps) during aerobatic manoeuvres.[39]
There are two methods of landing. "Wheeler" landing involves pushing the plane on to the runway at a moderate speed with just the main wheels on the ground, with the tail held up until speed reduces. It does not tend to bounce. Unlike most taildraggers, slow speedthree-point landings are quite difficult because there is not enough elevator authority to bring the tail down to the correct three-point attitude.[original research?] This means that the tail needs to be brought down sharply at just the right speed in order for the angular momentum[original research?] to carry it down sufficiently.[39]
The open cockpit allows pilots to move their heads over the side to see the runway during approach and landing. As the aircraft is a tail dragger, it is essential to land it straight with no sideways movement, to avoid ground loops.[39]
One often undocumented feature is that the carburettor de-icing mechanism is activated automatically when the throttle is reduced. This means that when an engine is running poorly due to ice the pilot must reduce power even further and then wait for the ice to melt.[39]
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The aircraft is operated by many private individuals and flying clubs.
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Numerous examples of the Tiger Moth are still flying today (an estimated 250).[9] The number of airworthy Tiger Moths has increased as previously neglected aircraft (or those previously only used for static display in museums) have been restored.
A number of aircraft have been preserved as museum displays (amongst others) at the:
Privately owned Tiger Moths, type if known, and any history of the airframe:
Data from The Tiger Moth Story,[79] The de Havilland Tiger Moth[33]
General characteristics
Performance
Armament
up to 8× 20 lb (9.1 kg) bombs
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
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