Geoffrey de Havilland was one of the first men to hold a pilot licence in England. During the Great War, de Havilland worked with George Thomas at Airco at Hendon, as his Chief Designer. Following the success of the DH4 and DH9 aircraft, Geoffrey de Havilland in the early 1920’s formed the de Havilland Aviation Company. Following further successes in light aircraft design, with the Tiger Moth and the Comet Racer, it was decided to build a fast wooden bomber for the RAF. The Mosquito proved to be so adaptable, it was used for many purposes.

After the Second World War, the design team at Hatfield designed a range of ‘Feeder’ airliners, along with some fast jet fighters for the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy. Alongside this work development was proceeding on the Trans-Atlantic jet airliner, the Comet, and later the Trident