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The Mosquito in the USAAF (ePub)

De Havilland’s Wooden Wonder in American Service

Aviation > Royal Air Force Photographic eBooks

By Tony Fairbairn
Imprint: Air World
File Size: 45.8 MB (.epub)
Pages: 256
Illustrations: 278 black and white illustrations
ISBN: 9781399017343
Published: 26th November 2021

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On 20 April 1941, a group of distinguished Americans headed by the US Ambassador to the United Kingdom, John Winant, and which included Major General Henry ‘Hap’ Arnold, Chief of the US Army Air Corps, visited the de Havilland Aircraft Company’s airfield at Hatfield, England.

The party was there ostensibly to gain an insight into how various US aircraft supplied to Britain were performing, as well as to observe some of the latest British products being put through their paces. The eighteen types on display included both US and British bombers and fighters. But the star of the day was undoubtedly the de Havilland Mosquito.

Having first flown only a few months earlier, on 25 November 1940, the aircraft that was put through its paces was flown by none other than Geoffrey de Havilland. Striving to impress the trans-Atlantic visitors, de Havilland provided an outstanding display of speed and manoeuvrability. It was a routine that impressed the Americans and left them in no doubt as to the Mosquito’s abilities.

Though the visitors harboured doubts about an aircraft made of wood, they returned to the United States with full details of the design. The Mosquito had also caught the eye of Elliott Roosevelt, son of the US President and a serving officer in the USAAC. An early specialist in military aerial mapping and reconnaissance, ‘ER’ swiftly realized the value of the Mosquito in the reconnaissance role and began lobbying vigorously for its acquisition. The Air Ministry duly noted ‘ER’s’ interest and influence.

Following America’s entry into the war, formal requests for Mosquitoes began in earnest in 1942. Initial deliveries for evaluation purposes in the United States soon followed in June 1943, the aircraft initially being supplied by de Havilland Canada. From February 1944 a steady flow of the photographic reconnaissance version, from Hatfield, were provided to what would become the USAAF’s 25th Bomb Group at Watton, England. There they served with distinction in a variety of specialist roles, including day and night photography, weather reconnaissance, ‘chaff’ (Window) dropping, scouting for the bomber force, raid assessment, and filming of special weapons projects.

A number of these Mosquitoes, serving with the 492nd Bomb Group at Harrington, were involved in the so-called ‘Joan-Eleanor’ project, working with OSS secret agents on the Continent. Finally, in 1945, the USAAF received much-anticipated night fighter Mosquitoes which enjoyed combat success with the 416th Night Fighter Squadron in Italy.

In this highly illustrated work, the author explores the full story of why the Americans wanted Mosquitoes, how they went about obtaining them, and their noted success and popularity with USAAF units.

"Tony Fairbairn does a superb job of detailing both the type’s genesis and operations with the USAAF – not a subject frequently explored."

Flypast - March 2023

This is a fascinating book!

Even the foreword, often ignored by the reader, is interesting and intriguing being written by one Brigadier General Elliot Roosevelt USAF (ReQ. And yes, that lS FDR's son; a pilot and a keen proponent of the Mosquito especially in the reconnaissance role...Lots of great pictures in the book for model builders looking for an unusual colour scheme and a good and informative read all round.

Aeromodeller December 2022

Over many years Tony tracked down and spoke with veterans, so there are many first-hand accounts. He also accessed relevant files from The National Archives, the RAF Museum and a number of US Archives. The result is a comprehensive account of US operations. The appendices include brief individual histories of all the Mosquitos built for the USAAF in England and in Canada, also details of operational losses where known. All in all it provides a lot of Mosquito history that will be new to many.

The de Havilland Aeronautical Technical School Assc - No 84, Autumn 2022

"Many books have been written about the de Havilland Mosquito, but few have given so much as a chapter to its service in the USAAF. Tony Fairbairn fills a much-needed gap with this volume, examining the role it played in reconnaissance, special operations, and night fighting. This is one to add to your bookshelf."

Air & Space Power History, Autumn 2022

As Featured In

Model Aircraft Monthly, October/November 2021

Review as featured in

Britain at War

About Tony Fairbairn

The son of an RAF pilot, TONY FAIRBAIRN’s childhood was spent on a variety of airfields around the world, which fired an early enthusiasm for aviation journalism and photography. While still at school in Singapore in the early 1960s he wrote his first article, for Air Pictorial, and then joined the RAF for a 30-year career. An active member of the RAF Historical Society, the American Aviation Historical Society and Air-Britain, he has authored two books, Action Stations Overseas and RAF Gibraltar, and over the years contributed to most of the national aviation magazines. His RAF duties included tours in Cyprus, Gibraltar and as an instructor at the RAF College, but it was a 1970s posting to East Anglia, an area resonant with disused American wartime airfields alongside current active ones, that sparked an interest in US aviation in general and the Second World War Eighth Air Force in particular.

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