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The De Havilland Canada Chipmunk is a fully aerobatic two seat
training aircraft, and was the standard, post-war primary trainer
for the RAF, ARMY and NAVY.
The de Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk was designed to succeed De
Havilland's classic Tiger Moth biplane trainer. Flying for the first
time at Downsview, Toronto on 22 May 1946, the tandem-seat
stressed-skin monoplane was the first indigenous design of de
Havilland Aircraft of Canada Ltd. The prototype, put through its
paces by Pat Fillingham from the parent company at Hatfield, was
powered bya 108-kW (145hpl de Havilland Gipsy Major 1C, Chipmunks
built to the prototype's specification were designated DHC-1B-1,
while those with a Gipsy Major 10-3 were designated DHC-1B-2. Most
Canadian-built Chipmunks had a bubble canopy.
Downsview built 218 Chipmunks, the last in 1951. Two were evaluated
by the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment at Boscombe
Down. As a result, the fully-aerobatic Chipmunk was ordered from
Hatfield and Chester to Specification 8/48 as an sb initio trainer
for the RAF.
The RAF received 735 Chipmunks manufactured in the UK. The first to
wear RAF roundels were flown by the Oxford University Air Squadron
from February 1950; thereafter, the type replaced the Tiger Moth
with all 17 university air squadrons, as well as equipping many RAF
Volunteer Reserve flying schools in the early 1950s. National
service pilots underwent their initial training on the Chip, which
served intermittently at the RAF College, Cranwell.
A few Chipmunks of No, 114 Squadron were pressed into service in
Cyprus on internal security flights during the troubles of 1958.
Under an agreement concluded between de Havilland and the General
Aeronautical Material Workshops (OGMA) of Portugal 60 Chipmunks were
licence-manufactured from 1955 for the Portuguese air force, and the
type was still being operated by this service until replaced in
1989. Other users included Burma, Ceylon, Chile, Colombia, Denmark,
Egypt, Eire, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Malaya, Saudi Arabia, Syria,
Thailand and Uruguay.
Civilianised versions of RAF aircraft became available in large
numbers from the late 1950s. Farm Aviation Services in the UK
heavily modified Chipmunks with a hopper tank in place of the
forward cockpit for spraying duties, these aircraft were
designated Mk.23s. A small number of similar conversions were
performed in Australia by Sasin/Aerostructures.
Today the Chipmunk remains a very popular sport and private
aircraft, while a small number are still used for pilot training
and tailwheel endorsements. Some have also been extensively
modified with the installation of Lycoming or Continental engines.
1291 Chipmunks built, including 217 in Canada, 60 under licence in
Portugal and 1014 in Britain. Most of these were built originally
for military customers, but many now fly with private operators.
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