Focke-Wulf Ta 154 Moskito (code-named Wespe) was a German two-seat, twin-engine wooden night fighter designed by Kurt Tank in late 1942. Inspired by the British De Havilland Mosquito, it was conceived to conserve critical duralumin by using plywood construction produced across a decentralized network of furniture factories, powered by Jumo 211 (and later Jumo 213) bomber engines. First flown on July 1, 1943, early testing revealed promising performance alongside significant defects, including poor cockpit visibility, structural vibrations, complex maintenance, and exhaust issues. Production was crippled when a British bombing raid destroyed a crucial glue factory, forcing the use of inferior replacement adhesives that led to catastrophic in-flight structural failures, such as the breakup of the Poznań-built V9 prototype. Although numerous variants were designed—ranging from night fighters with Schräge Musik cannon and radar (A-4, C-1) to specialized Mistel combinations (A-0/U3) and suicidal Pulkzerstörer concepts (A-0/U2)—only about 50 aircraft were completed. Ultimately deemed a failure due to construction flaws, adhesive issues, and lack of operational success, only a handful ever entered service (such as with NJG 3).
