Whyte, Reginald James (Leading Aircraftman)

The de Havilland DH.82 Tiger Moth is a 1930s British biplane designed by Geoffrey de Havilland and built by the de Havilland Aircraft Company. It was operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and many other operators as a primary trainer aircraft. In addition to the type's principal use for ab-initio training, the Second World War saw RAF Tiger Moths operating in other capacities, including maritime surveillance and defensive anti-invasion preparations; some aircraft were even outfitted to function as armed light bombers.

The Tiger Moth remained in service with the RAF until it was succeeded and replaced by the de Havilland Chipmunk during the early 1950s. Many of the military surplus aircraft subsequently entered into civil operation. Many nations have used the Tiger Moth in both military and civil applications, and it remains in widespread use as a recreational aircraft in several countries. It is still occasionally used as a primary training aircraft, particularly for those pilots wanting to gain experience before moving on to other tailwheel aircraft.

Overseas manufacturing of the type commenced in 1937, the first such overseas builder being de Havilland Canada at its facility in Downsview, Ontario. In addition to an initial batch of 25 Tiger Moths that were built for the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), the Canadian firm began building fuselages which were exported to the UK for completion. Canadian-built Tiger Moths featured modifications to better suit the local climate, along with a reinforced tail wheel, hand-operated brakes (built by Bendix Corporation), shorter undercarriage 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 with exhaust-based heating; various alternative undercarriage arrangements were also offered. By the end of Canadian production, de Havilland Canada had manufactured a total of 1,548 of all versions. Wikipedia

Wikipedia de Havilland Tiger Moth

Harold A Skaarup Web Page

YouTube de Havilland DH.82A Tiger Moth

Aircraft Images

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Moth, Tiger 5155

Moth, Tiger I 5155

First used by No. 32 Elementary Flying Training School at Bowden, Alberta. Category C1 damage at 12:15 on 11 December 1941, at Bowden aerodrome, when this aircraft collided on the ground with stationary Tiger Moth 4168. Category A crash at 10:00 on 19 February 1942, at Bowden aerodrome. Apparently flew into the ground. Had 346:45 total time.

1941-08-25 Taken on Strength No. 4 Training Command 2019-08-20
1941-December-11 Accident: 32 Elementary Flying Training School Loc: Aerodrome Names: Winter
1942-February-19 Accident: 32 Elementary Flying Training School Loc: Aerodrome Names: Whyte
1942-03-28 Struck off Strength Struck off, reduced to spares and produce by No. 32 EFTS 2019-08-20