The People's Mosquito is cutting wood!

We are very pleased to announce that the first wood is being cut for the fabrication of a complete set of wing ribs for The People’s Mosquito, RL249.

Corin McCrae of Aerowood Ltd,  will be cutting the ribs for RL249 at his workshops in Auckland, New Zealand in the coming weeks. There are various types of rib that make up the Mosquito’s wing, and these are fabricated from a variety of woods, both solids, such as Canadian Spruce, and plies. The Canadian Spruce that Aerowood will be cutting for RL249 is selected for aviation fabrication, and sourced and shipped to New Zealand from the same area on the west coast of Canada as that used by de Havilland Aircraft of Canada Ltd during WW2. Before being cut, it has undergone a number of tests to conform with air safety regulations.

Corin McCrae remarked on the quality of the Canadian Spruce, “It is the finest quality I’ve ever used for a wing”.

The rib pattern cutting process used today by Aerowood is significantly different to that used when the Mosquito was being produced in the 1940s. Today’s process uses a Computer Aided Design (CAD) system and the cutting is computer-controlled. This makes for a cutting process that is much more precise and a lot faster than in earlier times, but combined with the original hand-finishing skills, results in an accurate build and reduces any production flaws.

The wing ribs have several important roles:

a) to hold the surface plywood in the correct shape to generate lift (by forming the correct aerofoil cross-section)

b) to transfer aerodynamic loads from the wing’s surface to the wing spar

c) to stiffen the structure of the wing, as a whole.

TPM_wingCAD1
CAD drawing of the wing by Aerowood Ltd

The cost of the ribs will be in the region of £50,000 which will include the certification process and other related costs, and The People’s Mosquito is using this first tranche of the build as a platform from which to launch its fundraising campaign.

Potential donors can visit the The People’s Mosquito’s Fundraising page, where they will be able to choose from a number of options, how they want to donate. Donors will also be entered into the TPM Grand Launch Draw with the chance to win an exclusive key-ring, cut from the same Canadian Spruce as the wing ribs, and stamped with the logos of The People’s Mosquito and Aerowood Ltd.

13 thoughts on “The People's Mosquito is cutting wood!”

  1. Nice to see a new mosey in the making .the last one I saw was at wick combe air park in 1971 before it whent to the state.mick gilbert

      1. It’s long overdue we should have had one a long time ago to stand proud next to the Lancaster and spitfire she doesn’t get the recognition she deserves

        1. People's Mosquito

          Hello Don many thanks for your comments, naturally we totally agree with you. As the World’s first multi-role combat aircraft and in fact using composite wood materials ensured the Mosquito was to radar cross sections rather a ‘stealthy’ opponent. In addition to a top speed and the ability to do recon, bombing, intruder and ground /sea attack Ops she certainly deserves to be up in the skies once more. Now the technology and engineering is there we just need the budget donating. Once built our UK People’s Mosquito can enjoy several decades of service!

  2. Peter Sinclair

    I’m sure that fund-raising might be helped by a presence at UK Air Shows this year and onwards; has this been considered ?

    1. Hi Peter – yes, it is certainly something we’ve been considering for a while. We will be at as many airshows and events as possible this year – in whatever form. At the moment we do not have the reserves available to fund a large presence – as we would clearly like to do, as this would have an enormous impact on the project’s public profile. However we have had some kind offers from several organisations who are willing to let us “piggy-back” at events this summer, so we will be fielding a presence of some sort – however small. We will publicise these in good time.

      Thanks for getting in touch.

  3. Pingback: The People’s Mosquito — commencement of the wing cutting! | Travel for Aircraft

  4. Allan Donaldson (Teesside)

    If RL249 is built in New Zealand i cannot see it flying in the UK can some person explain what is going to happen??

    1. Allan Donaldson (Teesside)

      Thank you for the reply and i am very pleased it will be finaly be here
      in the UK
      I do require to know how and were to donate my money
      I am a very early founder of the Elvington Air Museum in Yorkshire i and my freinds
      did quite a lot of hardwork from scratch with the site

  5. This is a great day. Thanks to everyone at The People’s Mosquito Ltd, Aerowood in New Zealand, and our other friends who have made this first step possible. Working together with the NZCAA and the CAA, we shall see RL249 back in the air!

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