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Re: DH.82 Queen Bee - wireless controlled air target plane
All
Some small corrections.
The Queen Bee was never called DH.82 (or DH.82B as other sources state)
Thge aircraft was in fact a DH 60 fuselage using DH.82 wings. At no point in any remaining de Havilland files is any type number used. Not on any drawings or correspondance. The first prototype was referred to as a "Special Moth".
In correspondance is found titles such as "Tiger Moth with Wooden fuselage", Wooden Tiger Moth" and Special Machine for Catapult and Automatic Pilot research" but never any type number.
The first user of the Queen Bee was the Admiralty who ordered a few already in late 1933 and these entered service already early in 1934 with RAE. Two of these were sent to Malta in April 1934. Since you probably don't accept RAE as operational use, I would then say that May 1934 was its debut. Both K3598 and K4044 arrived to Hal Far on May 2nd.
Cheers
Stig
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