Harrym's story of the long-suffering Tiger Moth reminds me of the many stories told by my mentor, wartime de Havilland inspector and later ARB and CAA Surveyor, Charlie Taylor. I rebuilt a couple of Tiger Moths under his supervision and he assured me there would be no problems: 'there's a repair scheme for everything on a Tiger Moth, no matter what you find someone has broken it before you'.
Mr. Taylor recalled that wartime Army glider pilots arrived for basic training clad in itchy serge battledress and steel-shod ammunition boots, producing an impressive crash as they came to attention whenever an officer spoke to them. Unfortunately this included the trainee perched on the Tiger's flimsy plywood walkway, who replied to the CFI's friendly remark by screaming "Sah!" and smartly slamming his steel heels through the walkway, the wing ribs beneath, and the lower fabric.
After that the trainees wore conventional footwear. I can't remember the reference number but if you talk nicely to BAe they can produce the wartime drawing for Walkway, DH82a, repair of.