In the 1920s and 30s the Civil Aviation Branch (later Board) purchased at least 36 De Havilland DH60 Moths of various types, including the first Moth to be exported.

Whilst a few of the Moths were used by CAB at one time or another for its own business, the Moths were primarily intended for loan to the Aero Club movement for pilot training. The purpose of this apparent largesse was to provide a pool of trained pilots who could be called upon to serve in time of war. Subsidies were also paid to the Aero Clubs for each pilot trained.

In Aero Club service the Moths that survived long enough all invariably suffered various minor accidents, many caused by the unreliable engines of the day. Not a few were written off. Most of the remainder were impressed into RAAF service at the start of the Second World War, where even more of them were written off in accidents or through old age. Perhaps surprisingly, a few survived and still exist today.

Click on the images below to see photos of the CAB's DH60 Moths:

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