De Havilland DH-94 Moth Minor Type Two-seat trainer and tourer Manufacturer de Havilland Designer Geoffrey de Havilland Maiden Flight 22 June 1937 Introduced 1937 Retired some still flying Primary users RAF, RAAF, RNZAF Number built about 140 Variants Moth Minor Coupe, with enclosed cabin

Some views of the display: Front view Side view Cockpit view

The Aircraft On Display

The Museum's Moth Minor, VH-THT, construction number 94076, was originally RAAF aircraft A21-12. After World War II, it was sold in the civilian world as VH-AMI, restored and re-registered as VH-DDG in 1952, then as VH-THT in 1955. It was damaged and written off in 1962, near Busselton.

Type History

Intended as a replacement for the DH-82 Tiger Moth, the Moth Minor was never produced in sufficient numbers for that end, in spite of being a much more advanced design.

In the period before World War II, only about 100 were manufactured by de Havilland. Due to the demands of the war effort, during World War II all production was transferred to the De Havilland factory in Sydney, Australia, where a further 42 were manufactured.

Many of the British-produced aircraft were taken over by the RAF, some also being transferred to the RAAF for use alongside Australian-manufactured Moth Minors.

After the war, surviving Moth Minors were purchased by both British and Australian pilots, and some remain operational.

Specifications

General characteristics
Length:	24 ft 5 in (7.44 m)
Height:	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Wingspan	36 ft 7 in (11.15 m)
Powerplant:	de Havilland Gipsy Minor 4-cylinder inline piston engine, 90 hp (67 kw)
Weight:	empty 983 lb (446 kg), maximum takeoff 1,550 lb (703 kg)
Performance
Maximum speed:	103 kn (118 mph, 190 km/h)
Range:	261 nmi (300 mi, 483 km)
Service ceiling:	6,500 ft (5,030 m)

References / Links

Wikipedia

Records of ex-RAAF Moth Minors

de Havilland UK Moth Minor production list (includes Australian manufacture)