One of only five Second World War de Havilland Mosquito bombers left in Canada is in danger of being sold to a British buyer, a Calgary aviation buff warns.

Hundreds of Alberta servicemen flew the de Havilland Mosquito during the Second World War.
(CBC)

Hundreds of Alberta servicemen in the Royal Canadian Air Force flew the twin-engine aircraft during the Second World War. One even crashed into the Calgary airport control tower during a victory tour in May 1945.

Only five remain in Canada, including a restored one in Edmonton and one that has sat in storage in a Kensington warehouse since being acquired by the City of Calgary in the '60s.

Calgary's Aero Space Museum is in charge of looking after the warplane and one of its founding members said Wednesday that there is a deal underway to sell it.

"It [the museum] has recommended to city council that they sell the de Havilland Mosquito airplane to a buyer in the U.K. for $1.5 million with half a million dollars of that coming back to the museum," said aviation buff Richard de Boer.

Neither the museum nor the City of Calgary would comment on the plane and its fate, but Ald. Gord Lowe, who sits on the museum's board, confirmed it has been the subject of many recent closed-door meetings.

De Boer said he believes the museum wants to use some of the proceeds from selling the Mosquito to restore a Hawker Hurricane, which is also currently in storage.

"This organization is dependent on selling artifacts and that must stop," said de Boer.

This restored Mosquito in Edmonton is one of only five left in Canada. Another sits in a Calgary warehouse.
(CBC)

The city turned down an offer by the Nanton Lancaster Society Air Museum to restore and house the Mosquito for free.

Lowe said he feels the Mosquito has little connection to Calgary.

"The aircraft was actually built after the war. It was built for the RAF. It was built in England, was flown by the RAF for a very short period of time and then sold," said Lowe. "[The Hurricane] has the potential to be restored to be a very significant artifact."

De Boer said the city should let other museums restore the planes and keep both in Alberta to honour Canadian veterans.

There will be a public debate on the Mosquito's future at city hall later this year, but de Boer said he's prepared to ask the Department of Canadian Heritage to block any sale on cultural grounds.