D H Mosquito NF MkII P.G.Wykeham-Barnes. Raf No.23 Sqn. Malta - 1943 Diecast 1/72

This 1:72 scale Oxford aircraft represents a No. 23 Squadron Mosquito which was deployed to RAF Luqa in Malta. The squadron was the first to use the Mosquito in the Mediterranean, having transferred there in December 1942. Its key role was to perform intruder and bomber escort missions attacking enemy infrastructure in North Africa and Southern Italy, often flying low and fast. The Mosquito’s versatility played a vital part, with great success.

Wing Commander Peter Wykeham-Barnes was the commanding officer at Luqa and was to become one of WWII’s famous Bomber Aces, surviving the conflict and highly decorated too. Born on 13 September 1915 in Sandhurst, Surrey, Peter Wykeham-Barnes joined the RAF as an aircraft apprentice in 1932. Later he became a cadet at RAF College, Cranwell and was commissioned in 1937. After a series of deployments at home and abroad, he took over 23 Squadron on Mosquito II night intruders, leading the unit out to Malta. Whilst with 23 Squadron his navigator was 116970 Flying Officer Geoffrey Ernest Palmer, DFC. Together, they were a formidable team with great successes against the Luftwaffe.

Wykeham-Barnes ended the war with 3 and 1 shared biplane victories and a total of 14 and 3 shared destroyed. Post-war, he took an Air Ministry post followed by secondment to the USAF in Korea, where he flew night intruder sorties in B-26 Invaders of the 90th Bomber Group, USAF, and was awarded the US Air Medal. He ended his career in UK defence as Deputy Chief of the Air Staff and retired as Air Marshal Sir Peter Wykeham, KCB, DSO and Bar, OBE, DFC and Bar, AFC. He died on 23 February 1995.

With so much history behind it, our heroic model appears decorated in the night fighter garb of dark grey and dark green upper side and matt black underside with matt black nose, dorsal patch, guns and rear tyres. On the upper side, the No Step warning signs in red indicate the fragility of the structure in the area between the two engines which would not support any weight. Also in red are the aircraft identity markings DZ230 and YP-A along the length of the fuselage. The RAF roundel also features a yellow outer circle to make it more easily visible to other friendly aircraft. The island of Malta was awarded the George Cross for its bitter battles against the enemy during WWII and without doubt the DH Mosquito played a great part in its success.