Two P-51D Mustangs among the vintage fighter aircraft participating in the Heritage Flight Training Course at Davis-Monthan AFB in Tucson, Arizona on 3 March 2016, making a low pass in formation over the airfield. (USAF photo by J.M. Eddins Jr.)
The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is one of the iconic single-seat fighter-bombers used during World War Two, with over fifteen thousand built.
The Mustang, originally designed to use the Allison V-1710 engine, was a good aircraft. With the addition of the Rolls-Royce Merlin to the P-51B/C model, it transformed the Mustang’s performance at altitudes above fifteen thousand feed, matching or bettering the fighters of the Luftwaffe, making it a great aircraft.
The definitive version, the P-51D, was powered by the Packard V-1650-7 and was armed with six .50 caliber M2 Browning machine guns.
From late 1943, P-51s were used to escort bombers in raids over Germany, while the Merlin-powered Mustangs were used as fighter-bombers, roles in which the Mustang helped ensure Allied air superiority in 1944.
The P-51 was also in service with Allied air forces in the North African, Mediterranean, and Italian theaters, and saw service against the Japanese in the Pacific. During World War Two, Mustang pilots claimed nearly five thousand enemy aircraft shot down.
Two North American P-51D Mustangs are shown below during their display at the Classic Fighters 2007 airshow, held at Omaka Aerodrome, Blenheim, New Zealand:
Rico says, right after the Spitfire, the Mustang is Rico's favorite fighter.
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