De Havilland DH.71 Tiger Moth
The de Havilland DH71 Tiger Moth was a single-seat experimental and racing aircraft, of which only two were built. The first flight was 1927. With these streamlined monoplanes with fixed landing gear, the flight characteristics at high speeds and various engine types should be tested, in addition, they were also used in air races.
History
The de Havilland DH.71 Tiger Moth was developed in 1926 by the de Havilland Aircraft Company in Hatfield, England, to test the flight characteristics at high speeds and also several alternatively usable aircraft engine types from different manufacturers. For this purpose, a streamlined monoplane with fixed landing gear was built in 1927, which made its first flight in August of this year.
The two Tiger Moth, named after the "Tiger Moth " as a kind of moths of the family of tiger moths, should then take part in the air race for the King's Cup, but the first machine was damaged before the appointment. The second, II four- cylinder engine equipped with an air-cooled ADC Cirrus with stationary cylinders and an output of 85 hp aircraft had to give up due to the weather during the race.
As late as August 1927, a new 100 km round trip record of 300.09 km / h was achieved. To this end, the wings were shortened and a much stronger also air-cooled de Havilland Gipsy four-cylinder in-line engine has been built with 135 hp. A week later, a record altitude should be flown. At 5,849 meters above sea level, the pilot Hubert Broad had to give up due to technical problems with the oxygen system, although the machine was still rising.
The first specimen was repaired and should take part in an air race in Australia in 1930. But already in the preparations, the aircraft crashed after an engine failure, the pilot died in the crash.
The second aircraft was destroyed as the last preserved specimen in 1940 during the Second World War in a German air raid.