Keeping a Pommy Connection

So we are still managing to keep a pommy connection all the way here down under with the name of our street. As the land is ex-RAAF all the street names have RAAF connections and our's is de Havilland Circuit. Now don't get me wrong I wasn't very keen in the name but the block we wanted (lot 101) was on it so what can you do? Anyway being the inquisitive person I am I did a bit of research and am now very happy about the name.

The de Havilland Aircraft Company was a British aviation manufacturer founded in 1920 when Airco, of which Geoffrey de Havilland had been chief designer and owner, was sold to BSA. De Havilland then set up a company under his name in September of that year at Stag Lane Aerodrome in Edgware, England. The company later moved to Hatfield in Hertfordshire, England. De Havilland Aircraft Company was responsible for producing the first passenger jet and other innovative aircraft.

One of the most famous planes made by the de Havilland Aircraft Company was the de Havilland Mosquito and only 7,781 Mosquitoes were ever made . Now I could write all about it from my research but came across this book at the local library that actually sent me off into research mode in the first place so why don't I just let Stevyn Colgan say it best.......

The de Havilland Mosquito was one of the most successful combat aircraft of the Second World War. The aircraft was made mostly from wood as the company had the foresight to realise that metal would become scarcer as the war went on. They also realised that traditional woodworkers, such as furniture makers, could be retrained very quickly for aircraft production. Almost the entire plane was built of plywood, balsa and spruce. The total weight of metal components used in the aircraft was just 280 pounds.

The mosquito flew for the first time on 25 November 1940. The designers believed that it would e able to travel at least 20 mph faster than the Supermarine Spitfire. In the end, the Mosquito exceeded all expectations and its twin Rolls-Royce Merlin 25 engines and light weight allowed the plane to achieve a top speed of 361 knots (415 mph) at 28, 000 feet. The top speed of the Spitfire was 330 knots (378 mph). The Mosquito was the fastest aircraft in Bomber Command until May 1951. From this point on, all speed records would be held by jets. © Joined-up Thinking by Stevyn Colgan

If you want to see more about the Mosquito go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-cb6SmK_c2g