P-51 Mustang
Authors: Robert Jackson & Lynn Ritger
Pen & Sword Flight Craft Series
ISBN: 9781516759900
By Ray Mehlberger
Copyright 2020
MSRP: $26.95
By Ray Mehlberger
Copyright 2020
MSRP: $26.95
HISTORY:
The North American P-51 Mustang was one of the most successful and effective fighter aircraft of all time. During the last 18 months of the war in Europe, escorting bomber formations, it hounded the Luftwaffe to destruction in the very heart of Germany.
In the Pacific, operating from advance bases, it ranged over the Japanese home islands, joining carrier borne fighters, such as the Grumman Hellcat, to bring the Allies massive air superiority.
It was when the Mustang airframe was married to a Packard-built Rolls-Royce Merlin engine that the aircraft’s true excellence became apparent, possessing a greater combat radius than any other Allied single-engined fighter.
Yet the Mustang came about by accident, a product of the Royal Air Force’s urgent need for new combat aircraft in the dark days of 1940, when Britain, fighting for survival, turned to the United States for help in the island nation’s darkest hour.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Role: Fighter
National origin: United States
Manufacturer: North American Aviation
First flight: 26 October 1940
Introduction to service: January 1942 (RAF)
Status: Retired from military service 1984 (Dominican Air Force)
Primary users: United States Army Air Forces, Royal Air Force, Royal New Zealand Air Force, Royal Canadian Air Force
Number built: More than 15,000
Unit cost: U.S, $50,985 in 1945[5] (equivalent to $590,000 in 2019)
Variants: North American A-36 Apache, Rolls-Royce Mustang Mk.X, Cavalier Mustang
Developed into: North American F-82 Twin Mustang, Piper PA-48 Enforcer
THE BOOK:
Pen & Sword books is located in the UK.
This book is soft-cover of 96 pages in 8” x 11 ¾” page format.
The cover art shows a black and white photo of a P-51D-5NA, serial no. 44-13926, from the 375th Fighter Squadron. This aircraft crashed on 9 August, 1944.
In the center there is a color photo of a P-51D, nicknamed “Shimmy IV”. It served in Italy and was the aircraft of Commander of the 325th Fighter Group C. It is now in the National Museum of the U.S.A.F., Wright Patterson AFB, Ohio.
At the bottom there is a P-51-01, nicknamed “Jersey Jerk”, serial no. 44-15152, flown by Maj. Donald T. Strait, the leading ace of the 365th Fighter Group, with 13.5 victories.
The back cover shows at the top, Meng’s 1/48th scale P-51D.
In the center is Tamiya’s RAF Mustang III in 1/48th scale of the 316th Polish Fighter Squadron, City of Warsaw.
At the bottom is Airfix’s Mustang P-51-K in 1/38th scale.
The book contains 123 black and white photos.
Shown are:
A photo of the P-40, a photo of James H. “Dutch” Kindelberger, head of N. American Aviation from 1934 to 1960, 4 photos of the NA-73X prototype in flight, on the ground and crashed, a Mustang AG34S, 4 photos of the Mustang Mk. I, a photo of the Mustang 42, a photo of the Mustang F-6A with pilot, 2 photos of the Mustang P-51K, a photo of the Mustang F-6C, a photo of the Mustang F-6K, 5 photos of the Mustang P-51C, 10 photos of the Mustang P-51B, a photo of the Mustang XP-78, 3 photos of the Mustang P-51A, a photo of the Mustang F-6K-NT, 38 photos of the Mustang P-51D with 2 of the photos showing it crashed, a photo of a Mustang P-51B/C, 2 photos of a prototypal Mustang XP-51, 3 photos of armourers loading .50 cal ammo into the wings of a Mustang, a photo of Mustang A-6A’s flying over Italian mountains in 1942, 4 photos of Mustang A-36A.
A portrait of Maj. Robert Kirsch of the 527the FBS, 86TH FBG, 5 December, 1943, 2 photos of Mustang pilots in Burma, 15 photos of P-51’s showing not letter designations, 2 photos of the first P-51’s with Rolls-Royce engines, many photos of pilots and officers, a photo of a B-17, a photo of Maj. James H. Howard in a P-51 marked with 6 Japanese victories and 6 German ones, a photo of 4 Mustangs in flight with the 261st Fighter Group, 5 photos of fighter pilots, a photo of ground crewmen fitting drop tanks on a Mustang, a photo of a B-29, a photo of the Mustang XP-82, a photo of the sole prototype Mustang CA-15, a photo of the Cavalier Mustang II and a photo of a Piper PA-48.
There are 10 color photos in the book. These include:
Two photos of the Mustang Mk. I, a photo of a Mustang F-6, a photo of a Mustang P-51C, 3 photos of the Mustang P-51D with one of them shown with Israeli AF markings, a photo of the XP-82 Twin Mustang, a photo of the Mustang II and a photo of the Mustang PA-48.
There are 21 color side view profile illustrations in the book, consisting of:
A Mustang Mk. I, 3 side views of the Mustang Mk. III, a side view of the P-51-B1, a side view of the P-51-B-5NA, 3 side views of the P-51-B-10NA, 3 side views of the P-51-C-5NT, 3 side views of the P-51-D-NA, 4 side views of the P-51D, 2 side views of the P-51-D-20NA, a side view of the Mustang F6-D, a side view of the P-51K-10 and a side view of the Mustang D-30-NA.
In the built up P-51 models section: Shown are:
6 color photos of Academy’s kit of the P- 51C-5-NT shown without any modeller’s name for building it or what scale it is.
9 color photos of Accurate Miniatures 1/48 scale P-51A. No modeller’s name given again.
4 color photos of Airfix’s 1/48th scale P-51D and A-36 Apache. No modeller’s name given.
2 box arts and 7 color walk-around type color photos of Airfix 1/48th scale. No modeller’s name given.
A color photo of ARII’s 1/48th scale P-51B, including a black and white photo of the black “Tuskegee Airmen”. No modeller’s name given.
11 color photos of 2 kits by Hasegawa in 1/48th of the P-51D with a black and white photo of some pilots and ground-crewmen. No modeler’s name given.
11 color photos of Hobby Boss 1/48th scale P-51D. No modeller’s name given.
7 color photos of Testors/Italeri 1/48th scale P-51D. No modeller’s name given.
5 color photos of Meng’s 1/48th scale P-51D. No modeller’s name given.
8 color photos of 2 of Monogram’s 1/72nd scale kits of the P-51B. No modeller’s name given. With a black and white photo of a pilot.
A color photo of the Revell 1/72nd scale P-51D. No modeller’s name given.
5 color photos of the Revell 1/32nd scale P-51S. No modeller’s name given.
13 photos of 3 of Tamiya’s 1/48th scale P-51B. With a black and white photo of a pilot and one photo of box art. No modeller’s name given again.
This book will be of great interest to modellers that plan to build a P-51 version and to aviation historians alike.
I want to sincerely thank Casemate Publishers, the N. American distributor of Pen & Sword books for this review sample.
All Pen & Book titles can be viewed on Casemate’s website at:
The North American P-51 Mustang was one of the most successful and effective fighter aircraft of all time. During the last 18 months of the war in Europe, escorting bomber formations, it hounded the Luftwaffe to destruction in the very heart of Germany.
In the Pacific, operating from advance bases, it ranged over the Japanese home islands, joining carrier borne fighters, such as the Grumman Hellcat, to bring the Allies massive air superiority.
It was when the Mustang airframe was married to a Packard-built Rolls-Royce Merlin engine that the aircraft’s true excellence became apparent, possessing a greater combat radius than any other Allied single-engined fighter.
Yet the Mustang came about by accident, a product of the Royal Air Force’s urgent need for new combat aircraft in the dark days of 1940, when Britain, fighting for survival, turned to the United States for help in the island nation’s darkest hour.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Role: Fighter
National origin: United States
Manufacturer: North American Aviation
First flight: 26 October 1940
Introduction to service: January 1942 (RAF)
Status: Retired from military service 1984 (Dominican Air Force)
Primary users: United States Army Air Forces, Royal Air Force, Royal New Zealand Air Force, Royal Canadian Air Force
Number built: More than 15,000
Unit cost: U.S, $50,985 in 1945[5] (equivalent to $590,000 in 2019)
Variants: North American A-36 Apache, Rolls-Royce Mustang Mk.X, Cavalier Mustang
Developed into: North American F-82 Twin Mustang, Piper PA-48 Enforcer
THE BOOK:
Pen & Sword books is located in the UK.
This book is soft-cover of 96 pages in 8” x 11 ¾” page format.
The cover art shows a black and white photo of a P-51D-5NA, serial no. 44-13926, from the 375th Fighter Squadron. This aircraft crashed on 9 August, 1944.
In the center there is a color photo of a P-51D, nicknamed “Shimmy IV”. It served in Italy and was the aircraft of Commander of the 325th Fighter Group C. It is now in the National Museum of the U.S.A.F., Wright Patterson AFB, Ohio.
At the bottom there is a P-51-01, nicknamed “Jersey Jerk”, serial no. 44-15152, flown by Maj. Donald T. Strait, the leading ace of the 365th Fighter Group, with 13.5 victories.
The back cover shows at the top, Meng’s 1/48th scale P-51D.
In the center is Tamiya’s RAF Mustang III in 1/48th scale of the 316th Polish Fighter Squadron, City of Warsaw.
At the bottom is Airfix’s Mustang P-51-K in 1/38th scale.
The book contains 123 black and white photos.
Shown are:
A photo of the P-40, a photo of James H. “Dutch” Kindelberger, head of N. American Aviation from 1934 to 1960, 4 photos of the NA-73X prototype in flight, on the ground and crashed, a Mustang AG34S, 4 photos of the Mustang Mk. I, a photo of the Mustang 42, a photo of the Mustang F-6A with pilot, 2 photos of the Mustang P-51K, a photo of the Mustang F-6C, a photo of the Mustang F-6K, 5 photos of the Mustang P-51C, 10 photos of the Mustang P-51B, a photo of the Mustang XP-78, 3 photos of the Mustang P-51A, a photo of the Mustang F-6K-NT, 38 photos of the Mustang P-51D with 2 of the photos showing it crashed, a photo of a Mustang P-51B/C, 2 photos of a prototypal Mustang XP-51, 3 photos of armourers loading .50 cal ammo into the wings of a Mustang, a photo of Mustang A-6A’s flying over Italian mountains in 1942, 4 photos of Mustang A-36A.
A portrait of Maj. Robert Kirsch of the 527the FBS, 86TH FBG, 5 December, 1943, 2 photos of Mustang pilots in Burma, 15 photos of P-51’s showing not letter designations, 2 photos of the first P-51’s with Rolls-Royce engines, many photos of pilots and officers, a photo of a B-17, a photo of Maj. James H. Howard in a P-51 marked with 6 Japanese victories and 6 German ones, a photo of 4 Mustangs in flight with the 261st Fighter Group, 5 photos of fighter pilots, a photo of ground crewmen fitting drop tanks on a Mustang, a photo of a B-29, a photo of the Mustang XP-82, a photo of the sole prototype Mustang CA-15, a photo of the Cavalier Mustang II and a photo of a Piper PA-48.
There are 10 color photos in the book. These include:
Two photos of the Mustang Mk. I, a photo of a Mustang F-6, a photo of a Mustang P-51C, 3 photos of the Mustang P-51D with one of them shown with Israeli AF markings, a photo of the XP-82 Twin Mustang, a photo of the Mustang II and a photo of the Mustang PA-48.
There are 21 color side view profile illustrations in the book, consisting of:
A Mustang Mk. I, 3 side views of the Mustang Mk. III, a side view of the P-51-B1, a side view of the P-51-B-5NA, 3 side views of the P-51-B-10NA, 3 side views of the P-51-C-5NT, 3 side views of the P-51-D-NA, 4 side views of the P-51D, 2 side views of the P-51-D-20NA, a side view of the Mustang F6-D, a side view of the P-51K-10 and a side view of the Mustang D-30-NA.
In the built up P-51 models section: Shown are:
6 color photos of Academy’s kit of the P- 51C-5-NT shown without any modeller’s name for building it or what scale it is.
9 color photos of Accurate Miniatures 1/48 scale P-51A. No modeller’s name given again.
4 color photos of Airfix’s 1/48th scale P-51D and A-36 Apache. No modeller’s name given.
2 box arts and 7 color walk-around type color photos of Airfix 1/48th scale. No modeller’s name given.
A color photo of ARII’s 1/48th scale P-51B, including a black and white photo of the black “Tuskegee Airmen”. No modeller’s name given.
11 color photos of 2 kits by Hasegawa in 1/48th of the P-51D with a black and white photo of some pilots and ground-crewmen. No modeler’s name given.
11 color photos of Hobby Boss 1/48th scale P-51D. No modeller’s name given.
7 color photos of Testors/Italeri 1/48th scale P-51D. No modeller’s name given.
5 color photos of Meng’s 1/48th scale P-51D. No modeller’s name given.
8 color photos of 2 of Monogram’s 1/72nd scale kits of the P-51B. No modeller’s name given. With a black and white photo of a pilot.
A color photo of the Revell 1/72nd scale P-51D. No modeller’s name given.
5 color photos of the Revell 1/32nd scale P-51S. No modeller’s name given.
13 photos of 3 of Tamiya’s 1/48th scale P-51B. With a black and white photo of a pilot and one photo of box art. No modeller’s name given again.
This book will be of great interest to modellers that plan to build a P-51 version and to aviation historians alike.
I want to sincerely thank Casemate Publishers, the N. American distributor of Pen & Sword books for this review sample.
All Pen & Book titles can be viewed on Casemate’s website at:
Highly Recommended.