The Royal New Zealand Air Force operated two squadrons of Mosquito aircraft in Europe during the later stages of the Second World War. 487 Squadron flew the Mark 6 fighter bomber version, while 488 squadron flew several variants of the Mosquito night fighter.
RNZAF crews took part in many notable actions in Europe, such as the famous Operation Jericho raid which was designed to free members of the French resistance that were being held by the German Gestapo at Amiens Prison.
It wasn't until after the war in 1947 that the RNZAF in New Zealand received its own Mosquitos, when a total of 85 aircraft were delivered from the United Kingdom. Conversely, the RNZAF had been successfully operating Curtis P-40 Kittyhawk fighters since 1942.
Only twenty two of the Mosquitos delivered to New Zealand were eventually made operational, with the rest being placed in storage. Even then, the service life of these aircraft was relatively short, as they were all retired and replaced by de Havilland Vampire jets in 1952.
Most of these RNZAF Mosquitos were scrapped, but the remains of a handful of aircraft, and a single intact example, have survived to the present day.
From mid-1942 onwards, a total of 297 P40's equipped eight RNZAF squadrons and two additional training units. Eventually a number of these aircraft operated in the Pacific Theatre from late 1942 to 1944, where they amassed a total of 99 victories over Japanese aircraft.
By the end of the War, there were only 124 Kiwi Kittyhawk's remaining, with 20 having been lost in combat, 76 in accidents overseas, and another 76 in accidents in New Zealand.
The P-40's were replaced in front-line service by Corsair fighters in 1944, and the Kittyhawks were returned to New Zealand to continue being used as advanced trainers. Post-war they were retired from service, and most were sold for scrap in 1948.
Unfortunately, neither of the two airworthy fighters shown in this video are actual ex-RNZAF aircraft.
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