1938 Dehavilland Tiger Moth

It’s been 80 years since this Tiger Moth rolled out of the factory in the UK! It is owned  by Chris Baldwin and pictured here with a Classic 1964 Chevelle

Probably the best known training aeroplane ever, the Tiger Moth open-cockpit tandem two-seat biplane was first flown in 1931 from Stag Lane. It is a single bay biplane, with normal forward stagger to aid pilot vision, reduce the aerodynamic interference between the two wings, and ease cockpit access. The wings were given slight sweepback to maintain the centre of gravity and lift positions while having the centre-section support struts forward of the front cockpit. This made exit from the front cockpit easier when wearing a parachute, to comply with Royal Air Force requirements. The aircraft has no wheel brakes, and uses a tailskid for landing drag. A gravity-feed fuel tank forms the top wing centre-section. Anti-spin strakes forward of the tailplane were adopted in World War Two. In total, more than 9,000 Tiger Moths were built.