New Tiger Moth gains sea legs

Welcome to this latest edition of our Workbench blog and all the news, updates and modelling exclusives from the fascinating world of Airfix.

After the excitement of posting our first double blog edition for the year last weekend, we return to the sanity of a single blog update this week, as we provide an overview of a new 1/48th scale kit which is about to join the current range. Just the second release from the beautiful de Havilland Tiger Moth tooling first announced back in 2019, we are delighted to be welcoming this modern Airfix classic back to this year’s range, a kit which really does do justice to the enduring legacy of this quite magnificent aeroplane.

Serving to place us all on notice of the impending release of this handsome new model, we will be using this latest edition of Workbench to look at why the Tiger Moth occupies such a significant position in the history of aviation and consequently, why it made for such an appropriate subject for a new Airfix tooling design project recently. In addition to bringing you a first look at the stunning new original artwork created in support of this second release from our 1/48th scale tooling, we will also be looking at the details behind the two scheme options included with this kit, with the added bonus of something just that little bit special with regard to the lead Royal Navy scheme featured.

We’re in the presence of aviation royalty this weekend as our new 1/48th scale de Havilland Tiger Moth has the Workbench hangar all to itself and the doors are about to be pushed back.

If you want to fly, you need time on a Tiger Moth

A computer rendered image created from the design files produced in support of this 1/48th scale de Havilland Tiger Moth kit.

Most Workbench readers would probably agree that the vast majority of aviation enthusiasts have a particular fascination for fighting aeroplanes, those which contested both world wars and continue to patrol world skies to this day, but how did all those pilots who flew those aircraft so expertly gain their wings in the first place? Certainly, during the Second World War, all new pilots would have had to successfully negotiate the flight training programme of their respective air forces and if you were a British and Commonwealth student pilot, that would invariably mean spending time at the controls of the same aircraft, the de Havilland DH82A Tiger Moth.

Thankfully for them, the Tiger Moth was a classic aeroplane of unrivalled credentials and if they treater her in the correct manner, she would present them with all the secrets of flight and send them on their way to operational conversion units and front-line squadrons will all the skills and knowledge they would need for the next stage of their careers.

Fascinated by aviation all his life, Geoffrey de Havilland built his first aircraft beginning in 1907, using money borrowed from a family member, but later crashed the machine during its first flight. Undeterred, he immediately started work on a second, improved design, one which would become the bedrock of a successful career in aviation. He taught himself to fly in this successful second aeroplane and used it to secure an excellent position at what was to become the Royal Aircraft Factory. He even sold his aircraft to his new employers for the princely sum of £400, with the aircraft subsequently becoming the F.E.1, the first aircraft to be attributed a Royal Aircraft Factory designation.

Later accepting a position within the Royal Flying Corps during the Great War, his design skills were still required however, and during the war, he would oversee the design of several successful aircraft types which saw service during the conflict, such as the Airco DH4 and Airco DH9. After the war, he would establish his own aviation company, taking many employees from the former Airco factory with him and embarked on the design and production of a series of light aircraft and sports utility aeroplanes, all of which would carry the name Moth. A keen lepidopterist, de Havilland gave many of these aircraft the ability to fold their wings back along the length of their fuselage for ease of storage, something he described as being ‘Like a moth’, with this series of aircraft becoming some of the most important of the inter-war years.

Two design screenshot images produced during the design phase of this exciting 1/48th scale tooling project.

De Havilland’s intention with the Moth series was to produce aircraft which would have wide appeal across the world of aviation, possessing qualities which put them at the forefront of the industry when it came to effectiveness and usability. Central to his thinking was to produce a training aeroplane suitable for Royal Air Force use and whilst he thought his DH60 Moth was eminently suitable for this role, the Royal Air Force were less enthusiastic. Although the DH60 was loved by flying clubs up and down the country, the RAF felt that with the top wing being located over the forward cockpit, if an instructor or pilot had to get out of the aeroplane in an emergency, they might have difficulty doing so whilst wearing a parachute.

Certain that his aircraft had all the attributes a successful pilot trainer needed, de Havilland set about modifying the design of the DH60, most significantly by moving the top wing forward to allow for better access for the instructor, also including small fold down doors on the port side of each cockpit section, to further aid access when crews were wearing parachutes. Clearly, this wing re-location altered the lift coefficient of the wing, however, de Havilland cleverly overcame this by sweeping the angle of the wings back, whilst at the same time increasing the dihedral of the lower wing. Adding a host of other improvements, the Moth was now ready for Royal Air Force service and this new Moth had just become a Tiger!

Pilot maker extraordinaire, the de Havilland Tiger Moth has to be considered one of the most important aircraft of the 20th century and continues to provide the same flight training support it was originally designed to do back when it made its first flight in 1931.

Construction of the aircraft was of relatively traditional design, with welded steel tubing being covered with fabric and the extensive use of wood throughout. Adopting traditional flight controls, the flight instrumentation was almost identical in both cockpits, however, only the rear cockpit had a mixture control lever for the 4 cylinder in-line inverted 130 hp Gypsy Major engine. To maintain the aircraft’s centre of gravity, if the aircraft was being flown by a single pilot, they would use the rear cockpit, hence the placement of the engine mixture controls.

Only the lower wings featured ailerons, whilst the top wings had leading edge slats, which were used during take-off and landing and also during aerobatic manoeuvres. The fixed landing gear featured a system of dampening to make even the most heavy-handed landing bearable for both student and instructor, and whilst the aircraft didn’t feature brakes, the tail skid effectively slowed the aircraft once it was on the ground. The engine was fed by a fuel tank positioned centrally on the top wing and above the front cockpit, with a heavy-duty panel on the cowling top allowing people to stand on it when refuelling the aircraft. The tank’s 18-gallon capacity gave the Tiger Moth a range of around 300 miles and the aircraft featured a protruding fuel gauge on top of the tank, the fill level of which was clearly visible from the front cockpit.

Pilot maker both military and civilian

Always a highlight in any edition of Workbench, new box artwork serves to identify and inspire modellers looking for a new build project, but if you are looking to add a fabulously historic project to your 2024 build schedule, you’d do well to find one more appealing than this latest Tiger Moth release.

The new de Havilland biplane took to the skies for the first time in October 1931 and whilst the aircraft’s designer was clearly confident in the capabilities of his aeroplane, he could never have envisaged that his DH.82 Tiger Moth would go on to become one of the most important aircraft of the 20th century and astonishingly, would still be performing the flying training role for which he intended it to be used over 90 years later.

Clearly impressing military officials, flight tests resulted in an immediate order from the Royal Air Force, who now viewed de Havilland’s biplane as an ideal primary trainer for pilots starting out on their flying careers. That relatively modest original order was followed up by several subsequent orders and as the world descended into conflict, the RAF could call upon the support of around 500 Tiger Moths on strength, with many additional aircraft owned by flying clubs all over the country also soon pressed into military service. With its growing reputation, the aircraft also secured many overseas orders, ensuring that the de Havilland production lines at Hatfield were fully committed to the production of this superb aircraft.

From the perspective of a student pilot, the Tiger Moth was a relatively stable and forgiving aircraft to fly, with few handling vices and generally supportive of the odd silly mistake committed by a novice airman. It has since been described as an ‘easy aeroplane to fly, but a difficult one to fly well’, which seemed to have made this the ideal aircraft to serve as a primary/basic trainer for large numbers of future pilots destined to fly many different military aircraft types operationally. The aircraft didn’t like operating in crosswinds greater than 10 knots, but from a serviceability perspective, it was generally a case of filling the aircraft with fuel and oil and she was ready to go again – the Tiger Moth just wanted to be in the air.

Another development look at one of the files produced during the Tiger Moth design project.

As Britain prepared for possible invasion during the early summer of 1940, there were even advanced plans for the mild-mannered Tiger Moth to show a much more aggressive side of its nature, supporting the Spitfire and Hurricane pilots of Fighter Command they had previously helped train by attacking any potential invasion force by all means at their disposal. ‘Operation Banquet’ called for the use of every available aircraft in the defence of Britain’s coastline, equipping even the most unlikely aircraft with bomb racks and giving them an offensive capability.

Should a German invasion have been attempted, there would have been the very real possibility of seeing swarms of bomb laden Tiger Moths raining fury down on the enemy troops below, as Britain planned to hurl everything at any such cross-channel invasion, ensuring it had little chance of success. Thankfully, due in no small part to the contribution this effective ‘pilot maker’ made in training the heroic pilots of Fighter Command, Germany’s invasion plans for England were indefinitely postponed following the Luftwaffe’s inability to score a decisive aerial victory during the Battle of Britain, and the distinguished Tiger Moth didn’t have to besmirch its reputation by being forced to carry bombs.

An aircraft which possesses an enduring heritage which can only be matched by a handful of historic types, the de Havilland Tiger Moth was clearly an aircraft which attracted the attention of Airfix designers and in our own heritage, a scale representation of the Tiger Moth was one of the first aircraft kits to join the growing range, which it did in 1957. This original 1/72nd scale kit was replaced by a newly designed model kit in 2014, however for many modellers, what they really wanted was a Tiger Moth in the larger 1/48th scale.

Those requests were addressed in 2019, when we announced our new de Havilland Tiger Moth kit in 1/48th scale to great excitement and from that date, modellers have had access to a delightful scale representation of this classic aeroplane, and we are delighted to be welcoming what will be just the second release from this beautiful tooling here now. Featuring two incredibly appealing scheme options and aircraft in both Royal Navy and Royal Air Force service, let’s take a closer look at both new schemes now.

Scheme A – de Havilland DH82A Tiger Moth BB852/E, Britannia Flight, Britannia Royal Naval College, Roborough, Plymouth, Devon, 1st July 1965, the last biplanes to land on a British Aircraft Carrier (HMS Eagle).

This rather famous aircraft was constructed at the de Havilland Hatfield factory as a Tiger Moth II in 1935 and from September that year until being pressed into military service, was owned and operated by Reid and Sigrist Ltd of New Malden but flown from their airfield site at Desford in Leicestershire, wearing the civilian registration G-ADPC. Having served as a civilian flying training aircraft for several years, she was seconded into military service, flying with No.7 Elementary Flying Training School at Desford, but still operated by Reid and Sigrist.

Following the end of the Second World War, the aircraft was transferred to the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy and allocated the serial BB852, who used their Tiger Moths as target tugs and to provide training and air experience opportunities to both pilots and cadets. In early 1961, the Britannia Royal Naval College at Roborough established their ‘Britannia Flight’, using their existing aircraft and a selection of re-conditioned former civilian Tiger Moths, to provide flying opportunities for Dartmouth officer cadets and also to allow the grading of pilots hoping to join the Fleet Air Arm. The ‘Flight’ initially utilised the venerable Tiger Moth and indeed in this role, would become some of the final operators of the type in British military service, prior to trading in their Moths for Chipmunks, but not before their aircraft secured their place in history – more on that a little later.

You will notice when inspecting this aircraft a little more closely, it is fitted with the rather distinctive anti-spin strakes towards the rear of its fuselage, a safety measure which made the operation of the aircraft even more effective. When operating the aircraft at low speeds and particularly when practicing spin recovery, the original Tiger Moths often got into difficulties. This was because at high angles of attack, the horizontal stabilizer actually blocked the flow of air over the rudder and thus significantly reducing its effectiveness.

The introduction of these anti-spin strakes produced a powerful vortex in those high angle of attack situations, actually directing airflow towards the rudder and thus allowing greater control authority when attempting to recover from a spin. This design feature was really rather advanced for the time and similar technology was later employed on many of the world’s most successful modern fighter jets. When they perform their high energy, high angle of attack manoeuvres, the vortices produced over the wings which enthusiasts colloquially refer to as ‘fluff’ is that same intentional disruption of airflow.

Now referred to as LERX (Leading Edge Root eXtension), this system maintains the flow of air over the aircraft’s control surfaces when performing high angle of attack and high G manoeuvres, preventing the aircraft from stalling. Quite a design achievement for an aircraft which was training thousands of pilots in 1941.

This next trio of images are truly fascinating and were sent to us by Andrew Craig, a man who was flying in the rear seat of Tiger Moth BB852 during a deck landing on HMS Eagle – Andrew also kindly penned these image descriptions.

Flying out to the ship. NL879 crewed by (then) Lt Cdr Lyn Middleton RN (front seat) and Sub Lt John Hazell RAN. Lyn Middleton was a Buccaneer pilot on the staff at Dartmouth and commanded HMS HERMES during the Falkland war.

Short finals. Note that we used the axial deck rather than the angle for landing. Also note also the 'batsman' - don’t know who he was but he had to learn ’the old skills' for the day!

Two of the aircraft back at Roborough - BB852 nearest the camera. EAGLE sailors put the 'E' on the tail, thus 'claiming' the Tigers as part of the ship’s air group. Roborough was then a grass field with two strips.

During her time flying with the ‘Britannia Flight’ of the Britannia Royal Naval College, Tiger Moth BB852/E would be one of the aircraft which famously landed aboard Royal Navy aircraft carriers, providing students and qualified pilots with deck landing experience aboard an aircraft carrier at sea. These flights were quite a challenge for both pilots and the Landing Signal Officer on board the carrier, as they had to ignore all the latest technology the ship had to offer and revert to a manual system which was used during the Second World War.

We know this particular aircraft was used for deck landing experience flights on HMS Eagle because we were fortunate enough to have the input of a man who actually flew them. We were lucky enough to make the acquaintance of Mr Andrew Craig, who not only had specialist knowledge of those deck landing operations, he was actually in the rear cockpit of Tiger Moth BB852 on 1st July 1965. Andrew kindly sent us a photograph of the relevant page of his logbook, which included details of his flight on that day and an official stamp from the Britannia College at Dartmouth.

In addition to providing these definitive details, Andrew also sent us a selection of fascinating images which show both this very aircraft during his time with the unit, but also a picture taken from the rear cockpit of BB852 as she is approaching the deck of HMS Eagle in the English Channel, south of Eddystone Lighthouse. Of specific interest to Workbench readers, Andrew has kindly allowed us to use these pictures as part of this review, but if you have made it this far, you already know that.

You will notice the full scheme detail guide included below that it also features an exploded rudder view on the main scheme decoration guide for this option, the aircraft is presented both with and without a black capital letter ‘E’ on its rudder. Apparently, this letter addition was made to those Tiger Moths which had landed and taken off from HMS Eagle and therefore in the eyes of the ship’s crew, made it part of their Carrier Air Group – now that’s what you call authentic research!

Full scheme details for this completely fascinating Royal Navy Tiger Moth.

Unfortunately, or fortunately, whichever way you look at it, that’s not the end of this aircraft’s incredible story, but it is almost the end of its military career. Whilst attempting a landing back at Roborough on 3rd November 1964, BB852 was hit by a sudden gust of wind, causing her to veer off the runway at some speed. She struck a pill box and overturned and whilst both instructor and student escaped the incident without suffering significant injury, damage to the aircraft was severe enough that she was subsequently struck off charge.

Despite the wreckage being placed in storage for many years, the story of this Tiger Moth hadn’t ended just yet and she was later purchased by a private buyer who intended to restore her to flying condition. After safely negotiating a long and painstaking restoration programme, the aircraft felt the wind beneath her wings once again in April 1992 and since that date, has been flown regularly, helping to preserve the enduring legacy of these magnificent aircraft. She now wears her original G-ADPC civilian registration and is resplendent in a smart dark blue and silver livery and can often be seen wherever airworthy Tiger Moths gather in the country.

Airfix modelling is all about the research and preservation of history in a physical scale sense and thanks to Andrew’s incredible assistance, could there possibly be a more fascinatingly appealing modelling project than this?

Once again, we would like to thank Andrew for his help, particularly in allowing us to include these details and the spectacular selection or original images he sent us.

Scheme B - de Havilland DH82A Tiger Moth N-9496/17, No.9 Elementary and Reserve Flying Training School, Royal Air Force Ansty, Warwickshire, England, October 1940.

The second scheme option included with this new kit could hardly be more different from one of the last Tiger Moths in British military service, not only in the scheme in which it’s decorated, but also as it’s an example of one of the earliest Tiger Moths in Royal Air Force service. Tiger Moth N9496 was built at Hatfield in the late summer of 1939 and accepted by the RAF at No.10 MU at Hullavington towards the end of November 1939. She passed to the care of No.9 Elementary Flying Training School at Ansty in Warwickshire from October the following year, an airfield where she would subsequently be used to provide flying training support for many thousands of Allied trainee pilots for almost the next four years.

In this role, this hard-working Tiger Moth would have had literally hundreds of pilots of different abilities at her controls and it is highly likely that with that being the case, some of the most famous airmen who went on to serve in the RAF during the Second World War may have sat in one of her cockpits.

It’s interesting to note that we have elected to represent this aircraft as a Tiger Moth providing training support during the early stages of the war and towards the end of the Battle of Britain, and as such, she does not feature the spin recovery strakes which were fitted to the previous Royal Navy option. The aircraft is also finished in what has to be described as classic RAF Training Command colours and we have included painting guidance to finish your model in the Shadow Compensating scheme which was a feature of some RAF biplane aircraft at that time, if desired.

Although we know aircraft such as Tiger Moths and Gloster Gladiators were painted in this fascinating scheme, it can be devilishly difficult to definitively corroborate such details, not just because many contemporary pictures of the period were taken in black and white, but also because the shadow cast by the top wing at most angles really doesn’t help our cause. If the Shadow Compensating scheme was utilised, the lower wing was painted with lighter variations of the standard dark green and dark earth of the Temperate Land Scheme used on all RAF day fighters.

Full scheme details of this No.9 Elementary Flying Training School Tiger Moth, an aircraft which had not yet benefitted from the addition of anti-spin strakes.

The Airfield at Ansty must have been one of the busiest in the country during the wartime years, as it was used by a number of flying schools during that time, in addition to several Maintenance Units at various stages. Initially operating as No.9 Elementary and Reserve Flying Training School, the outbreak of war almost immediately brought about a change of name to No.9 Elementary Flying Training School and the centralisation of a programme which had now taken on even greater operational importance. As the programme developed, students would use the school’s Tiger Moths to allow instructors to gauge the capabilities of a prospective student pilot, before they were sent overseas to one of the training centres which formed part of the wider British Commonwealth Air Training Plan.

Following the end of the war, the many admirable qualities possessed by the Tiger Moth made them a highly desirable commodity for overseas air forces and indeed within the civilian/private flying world and whilst this aircraft would be sent to ply her trade in sunnier skies, her overseas service would prove to be short lived. Packed and crated for sea transportation at RAF Sealand, the aircraft left the port at Birkenhead bound for Rangoon and a new career training pilots for the Burmese National Air Force.

Part of a larger consignment of former RAF aircraft which also included Airspeed Oxfords, Austers and Spitfires, unfortunately, this Tiger Moth didn’t get the opportunity to extend her proud record in training fledgling pilots very much longer, as she was destroyed in an accident at Rangoon Airport in April 1948.

Full branded box presentation for what will only be the second release from our new 1/48th scale de Havilland Tiger Moth tooling.

Still one of the most recognisable aircraft in British skies to this day and one which continues to provide air experience opportunities and ab initio pilot training support to many hundreds of people each year, the de Havilland Tiger Moth really is an aviation marvel and one which will continue to outlive many of the aircraft types it was introduced to provide pilots to fly. One of the most popular new kits in the Airfix range, we are delighted to have the Tiger Moth back in the range once more and with two fascinating scheme options to choose from, isn’t it about time we all added a little aviation class to our build schedules for the coming year?

We are afraid that's all we have for you in this latest edition, but we will be back next Friday with more project development updates and the very latest Airfix kit exclusives. In the meantime, we are always keen to hear your views on all things Airfix and in particular, any thoughts and opinions you may have regarding our Workbench blog. If you would like to drop us a quick line, could we please ask that you use our workbench@airfix.com email for all correspondence. 

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