History: This P-51D model “Mustang”, serial 44-72942,was built in fall of 1944 by North American Aviation in Inglewood, California. It was delivered to Army Air Force in Feb 1945 and shipped to the 12th Air Force in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations in Europe. It was transferred to the 15th AF and would have served… More
Category Archives: P-51
North American P-51 Mustang “Hell-er Bust”
History: “HELL-ER BUST” is a P-51D Mustang, serial number 44-72438, built at the North American plant at Inglewood and delivered to the United States Army Air Force, 8th Air Force in January of 1945 and later served with the Swedish Air Force as Fv26131 from 1948-1952 and ended its military career as FAD1920 with the… More
Commemorative Air Force North American P-51 “Red Nose”
History: Commemorative Air Force P-51D “Mustang” Red Nose In 1957, a small group of ex-service pilots pooled their money to purchase a P-51 Mustang, beginning what is now called the Commemorative Air Force (CAF). With the addition of a pair of F8F Bearcats, the CAF became the founders of the Warbird Movement, an effort to… More
Shark Mouth P-51 Mustang
History: This airplane was last flown by the Uruguayan Air Force in the mid 1950’s then put on display in downtown Buenos Aires, Argentina until it was sold to an American collector in the early 1980’s. Some minor restoration/rebuild work had been done over the last 30 years but nothing really of significant progress until… More
CAF Red Tail Squadron P-51C Mustang Tuskegee Airmen
History: About the P-51C Mustang The CAF Red Tail Squadron restored and flies this rare P-51C model Mustang fighter to create interest in the story of the Tuskegee Airmen, who flew P-51s just like it during WWII. The red tail and the sound of the powerful Merlin engine ensure a crowd will gather wherever the… More
Texas Flying Legends Museum Whistling Death FG-1D Corsair
History: When the Navy Bureau of Aeronautics (BuAer) requested a carrier-based fighter in 1938, their operational requirements pushed the envelope. BuAer’s primary objective was to acquire a plane with enough speed to match land-based aircraft while robust enough for carrier operations. A design team from Vought (later known as Chance-Vought) took up the challenge. Chief… More
Texas Flying Legends Museum P-51D Mustang “Dakota Kid II”
History: The P-51 story begins in 1940 when the British approached North American aviation to build a new fighter. North American agreed in January, 1940, and remarkably, by September the aircraft made its first flight. The D model, powered by a Packard-Merlin Rolls-Royce V-12 engine rated at 1490 horse power, was produced in the greatest… More
Texas Flying Legends Museum P-51D Mustang “Little Horse”
This P-51D Mustang served in the European theatre flown by Lt Charles Koenig who named it Little Horse. In May of 1944, Ken Dahlberg arrived in England on a troop ship and was assigned to the 354th Fighter Group. The only problem was that he had been practicing in a P-47, and the squadron he… More
North American Aviation P-51D Mustang “Swamp Fox”
History: US Army Air Force and US Air Force History of P-51 Mustangs 44-15660 & 44-74202 P-51D-25NA, s/n 44-15660 (the original “Swamp Fox”) According to USAF records, the P-51D, s/n 44-15660, was manufactured by North American Aviation, Inglewood CA and delivered to the USAAF on 20 Oct 1944. It departed the US by sea on… More
Cavanaugh Flight Museum P-51D Mustang “The Brat III”
History: You can purchase a ride in this historic aircraft! The museum’s P-51D was manufactured in 1944 and shipped to England. It was assigned to the 9th Air Force, 370th Fighter Group, 401st Fighter Squadron, and was flown by Lt. Hjalmar Johnsen. In June 1947 it was sold to the Swedish Air Force and served… More