P-51 Mustang
by Weston Westmoreland
Title
P-51 Mustang
Artist
Weston Westmoreland
Medium
Photograph - Photograph
Description
P-51D Mustang at Edwards Air Force Base, 1955.
This photograph shows a NACA research pilot running up the engine of the F-51D Mustang on the taxiway adjacent to Rogers Dry Lake at the NACA High-Speed Flight Research Station (now the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center) at Edwards Air Force Base, California, in 1955.
The P-51D Mustang was the first aircraft to employ the NACA laminar-flow airfoil design and could dive to around Mach number 0.8. As an F-51, it was used as a proficiency aircraft at the High Speed Flight Station.November 2, 1955.
The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is a long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in 1940 for the British Purchasing Commission. The Commission approached NAA to build P-40 fighters under license for the RAF. Rather than build an old design from another company, NAA proposed the design and production of a more modern fighter.
The Mustang was originally designed to use an Allison engine with limited high-altitude performance. The replacement of the Allison with a Rolls-Royce Merlin transformed the Mustang's performance at altitudes above 15,000 ft, allowing the aircraft to compete with the Luftwaffe's fighters.The definitive version, the P-51D, was powered by the Packard V-1650-7, a license-built version of the Rolls-Royce Merlin 66 two-stage two-speed supercharged engine and was armed with six .50 caliber M2/AN Browning machine guns.
From late 1943, USAAF Mustangs escorted bombers in raids over Germany, while the RAF's used the Merlin-powered Mustangs as fighter-bombers. The P-51 was also used by Allied air forces in the North African, Mediterranean, Italian and Pacific theaters. During World War II, Mustang pilots claimed to have destroyed 4,950 enemy aircraft.
At the start of the Korean War, the Mustang, by then redesignated F-51, was the main fighter of the United Nations until jet fighters, including North American's F-86, took over this role; the Mustang then became a specialized fighter-bomber. Despite the advent of jet fighters, the Mustang remained in service with some air forces until the early 1980s. After the Korean War, Mustangs became popular civilian warbird and air racing aircraft.
More fighters, bombers and biplanes one copy-paste away in my Aircraft Gallery at http://westonwestmoreland.com/collections/aircraft
You can learn more about what drives me in my blog:
http://inspiringthoughtsandimages.com/
Weston Westmoreland.
Uploaded
March 22nd, 2018
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