Air-Britain Books

The De Havilland Cabin Moths
Building on Success – Establishing a New Future
Stuart McKay MBE

Having designed military aeroplanes at the start of his aviation career, Captain Geoffrey de Havilland was anxious to redirect his talents towards civil applications. His opportunity came in 1920 when he was encouraged and funded by his previous employer, George Holt Thomas, to start his own company.

Business was slow and the company was on the point of financial collapse when a wealthy young sportsman named Alan Butler appeared on the scene in 1923 and commissioned a three-seat touring biplane. Butler was so impressed with the service provided by the company that he became a major investor and eventually joined the board as Director and Chairman.

The financial security provided by Alan Butler allowed Geoffrey de Havilland to pursue his dream of designing a small civil aeroplane suitable for the ‘man in the street’. The result was the DH.60 Moth of 1925 which became a worldwide success. Continued development of the airframe and engine plus an understanding of customers’ requirements led directly to the revolutionary DH.80 Puss Moth in 1929, the first of the practical ‘private owner’ Cabin Moths.

This book covers the story of four of de Havilland’s Cabin Moths: the DH.80 Puss Moth, DH.83 Fox Moth, DH.85 Leopard Moth and DH.87 Hornet Moth, their design, construction, development, marketing and operation.

The story starts in the golden age of aviation in the 1930s with personalities such as Amy Johnson, Jim Mollison, Bert Hinkler and Alex Henshaw, long-distance record flights to South Africa, India and Australia, air race successes and the opening of air services in remote areas of Canada, Australia and New Zealand, the book continues through World War II and communications duties. We come right up to the present day and thriving Cabin Moth restoration programmes. As is to be expected from a book produced by Air-Britain, extensive histories for each aircraft are included.

Author Stuart McKay is the Founding Secretary of the DH Moth Club and Editor of the quarterly magazine ‘The Moth’. He is also author of a number of books including the definitive histories of the DH.60 Moth and the DH.82 Tiger Moth as well as the story of the 1934 MacRobertson International Air Races from Mildenhall to Melbourne.

Hardback, 400 pages, lavishly illustrated throughout in colour and black and white with 1,000 photographs and artwork including period brochures and posters.

Air-Britain and DH Moth Club members £50.00 Non-members £75.00.

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Philip Jarrett

It is hard to resist the temptation to postulate what the possible future of the Bristol M.1 monoplane would have been, had things been different from the start. While its potential was clearly evident to pilots from its first appearance, the M.1 was summarily dismissed by the Royal Flying Corp's (RFC) most senior officer even before it had undergone its initial full Service assessments. Had the troublesome Le Rhône engine been replaced with a more reliable Clerget or Bentley rotary and twin synchronised Vickers guns been installed, the M.1 could well have created a potent front-line fighter, and a variant with increased fuel tankage might have proved a formidable longer-range escort fighter to protect reconnaissance and bomber aeroplanes delivering attacks beyond the enemy's lines.

Sadly, as recounted in this book, this potential was unrealised. No M.1s ever served on the Western Front, and although some of the small number produced went to squadrons in the Middle East, many were relegated to training units in the UK. Ironically, it was there that they gained popularity and prominence, becoming the chosen personal mounts of senior pilots and instructors.

Curiously, a small number ended up in South America, equipping the nascent Chilean air arm in the early interwar years and being used for pioneering flights across the highest point of Andes into Argentina. In addition, a few went on to the British civil register, one went to the USA and another to Australia, where it survived to become the sole remaining original example of the type.

As well as providing a comprehensive account of the M.1's development and usage, in this lavishly-illustrated volume Philip Jarrett includes official period documentation regarding performance, first-hand pilots' impressions of the type, the known individual histories of the 125 M.1s that were eventually produced, accounts of the airworthy and static reproductions, a set of specially prepared general-arrangement drawings, and colour artwork illustrating a selection of the schemes applied, some of which can only be described as extraordinary. For the latter a degree of informed speculation has sometimes been necessary owing to the lack of colour imagery in the period with which we are concerned, but every effort has been made to achieve the most accurate results possible - the current trend for 'colourisation' of black-and-white images, with its very suspect results, has not been indulged in.

450 illustrations in both colour and black and white including general arrangements and colour side view drawings.
Softback, 120 pages
Members: £25.00 Non-members: £37.50

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