De Havilland Moth Family

DH60 Moth

Although the first de Havilland DH-60 Moths arrived in Canada in July 1927, for use by the RCAF in the Hudson Strait Expedition and the Ontario Provincial Air Service (OPAS), it was the Federal Government's decision in September 1927 to support to civilian flying clubs, that provided the real impetus for de Havilland Moths to be used in Canada. The Government authorized the provision of two aircraft by the Department of National Defence to each flying club.

In response Francis St. Barbe of de Havilland in England traveled through Canada in December 1927 visiting those interested in the Moth. De Havilland decided to create a branch plant in Toronto, which was incorporated in March 1928. The Moth family of aircraft became a fixture among the flying clubs, private pilots and governmental flying organizations such as OPAS and the RCAF, with 62 being assembled in 1928 alone. The Moth family of aircraft was sure in normal flights but required skill when used in aerobatics. These characteristics, and the ease and low cost of operation, made it very popular for both private owners and as a training aircraft.

At first the Toronto plant assembled Moths and modified them for Canadian conditions but in October 1936, de Havilland Canada proposed building DH-82 Tiger Moths in Toronto. The Canadian-built DH-82 had many changes over the British version, with the prototype first flying on 21 December 1937. This was the first aircraft built in Toronto since January 1919. Further production continued for the RCAF and civil operators so that by the end of the production run the RCAF alone had received 1546 of the various versions of the DH-82, becoming the RCAF's main aircraft for elementary flying training during the Second World War. After the war they became surplus with hundreds ending up in the hands of flying clubs, small operators and private owners.