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10 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. RAF Mosquito with Molins gun WWII IWM CH 14114: Royal Air Force official photographer : Forward (Fg Off)· Public domain
- 2. DH.98 Mosquito NFXIX MM638 RSwAF RWY 10.49 edited-2: RuthAS· CC BY 3.0
- 3. DH 98 Mosquito fore: Wilson44691· CC0
- 4. DeHavilland Mosquito NACA 1945: NACA Langley Research Center· Public domain
- 5. De Havilland DH.98 Mosquito B Mk IV Series 2 (restoration): Fotoafdrukken Koninklijke Luchtmacht / Photo Prints, Royal Netherlands Air Force; restored by Chris Woodrich· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 6. De Havilland Mosquito-DK338-1942: Photographer: De Havilland photographer for Ministry of Aircraft Production· Public domain
- 7. De Havilland Mosquito - Prototype 1: Original uploader and author was Deben Dave at en.wikipedia· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 8. De Havilland Mosquito IV ExCC: Wikimedia Commons· Public domain
- 9. De Havilland Mosquito Prototype: Unknown author Unknown author· Public domain
- 10. Mosquito photo-reconnaissance photoflash bomb loading WWII IWM C 4998: Broom R R (Plt Off), & Wilson J G (Plt Off), Royal Air Force official photographer· Public domain
what is it?
The de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito was a British twin-engined, multi-role combat aircraft, introduced during the Second World War. Unusual in that its airframe was constructed mostly of wood, it was nicknamed the "Wooden Wonder", or "Mossie". In 1941, it was one of the fastest operational aircraft in the world.
How to recognise it: 2 piston engines with propellers · 16.5 m wingspan
base stats
Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).
fun facts
- First flew 86 years ago, in 1940.
- Top speed is 5.1× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
- Wingspan of 16.5 m: about 4 cars parked nose to tail.
- Range of 2,400 km: 13× Amsterdam to Brussels.
- Can fly 1.3× higher than Mount Everest (8,849 m).
piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.
spec sheet
- first flight
- 1940-11-25
- introduced
- 1941
- retired
- 1953
- status
- retired
- number built
- 7,781
- role
- bomber
- origin
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- makers
- de Havilland Aircraft Company
- engines
- 2× Rolls-Royce Merlin
- length
- 13.6 m
- wingspan
- 16.5 m
- height
- 5.3 m
- max take-off weight
- 11.3 t
- top speed
- 668 km/h
- range
- 2,400 km
- ceiling
- 11,278 m
Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q221344, Wikipedia: De Havilland Mosquito (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.