TSETSE MOSQUITO | THE RAF’S BIG GUN
DAVE UNWIN EXAMINES THE ‘BIG GUN’ VARIANT OF THE LEGENDARY DH.98.
Having flown operationally as a fighter, night-fighter, fighter-bomber, bomber, photo-reconnaissance and in many other roles, the de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito can probably be considered to be the first multi-role combat aircraft and one of the most versatile aircraft ever made. Possibly one of the least known variants was the FB Mk.XVIII, often referred to as the ‘Tsetse Mosquito’ as it possessed a particularly powerful sting!
Of its myriad roles, a task that particularly suited the Mosquito was anti-shipping patrol. Its combination of speed, range and agility, plus the twin-engine configuration made it ideal for the interdiction of axis shipping and for use as a convoy escort to help deter or destroy the U-boat scourge. It is generally accepted by historians that winning the Battle of the Atlantic was pivotal to ultimate victory and that the Kriegsmarine’s U-boat fleet posed the greatest danger to Britain.
Royal Navy planners were particularly keen to destroy U-boats entering or leaving the Bay of Biscay and initially the Mosquito seemed perfectly suited to this mission. However, its armament of four.3…
