American champion

Air Classics, Mar 2002 by O'Leary, Michael

A SPECIAL PORTfOLIO PROFILING ONE Of HISTORY'S MOST FAMOUS COMBAT AIRCRAFT-- THE NORTH AMERICAN P-51 MUSTANG

The American flag flying from the cockpit identifies this Mustang as Gunfighter II which is flown by General Reg Urschler (USAF, Ret.). An enthusiastic proponent of Mustangs, Reg visits numerous airshows each year where many individuals have enjoyed their first Mustang ride courtesy of Reg and Gunfighter 11. The aircraft is P-- 51D-20-NA s/n 44-73264 N5428V. Reg donated the aircraft to the Confederate Air Force (now Commemorative Air Force) years ago but retains sponsorship of the fighter.

Matt Jackson flying Joe Kasparoff s P-51B s/n 43-- 25147 N51PR over the Pacific Ocean in its very distinctive paint scheme which was applied for the Reno Air Races but it was never raced. Originally restored from a pile of parts by Pete Regina with its first post-restoration flight on 11 June 1981, the aircraft is now in Britain with The Fighter Collection and is a popular visitor to British airshows.

The year 2001 was marked by the first post-restoration flights of two P-51Cs, the first of which was Kermit Weeks's P-51C s/n 42-103831 N1204. The aircraft achieved fame being flown by Paul Mantz in the post-war Bendix air races and was on display for many years before being obtained by Kermit in 1984. Complete in every detail, the Mustang was a ground-up restoration undertaken by Art Teeters and his Cal-Aero Pacific crew.

Surely one of the crowning achievements of the Commemorative Air Force has been the restoration of P-51C s/n 42-103645 N61429. This aircraft had been obtained by the CAF in the mid-1960s in poor condition and several attempts at restoring the rare variant did not

come to fruition until the project was taken over by the Southern Minnesota Wing who funded the restoration, the majority of which was undertaken by Gerry Beck and Bob Odegaard. The aircraft was photographed over St. Paul during July 2001 being flown by Tim Jackson.

Wallace Sanders flying his colorful Nervous Energy V. Built as s/n 45-11391, the Mustang carries the markings of a plane flown by Colonel Ernest H. Beverly of the 325th Fighter Group. During World War

Two, Wallace flew 50 missions as first pilot aboard Boeing B-17Gs of the 463rd Bomb Group out of Foggia, Italy. During that period, Wallace remembered his B-17 being particularly well-protected by the checkertail Mustangs of the 325th FG.

As the value of Mustangs has increased, owners have lavished more and more care on the classic craft and numerous examples have been the subject of ground-up restorations including Ed "Hollywood" Shipley's Big BeautVid Doll and the attention to detail is evident in this close-up view.

For the majority of the flying Mustangs, motive power comes from the Rolls-Royce Packard V-1650 Merlin, surely one of the most important aero engines ever built. Several shops specialize in the total restoration of the Merlin and this detail view of a Zeuschel-built Merlin shows that the quality of engine restoration Is equal to that of the airframes.

The Fuerza Aerea Dominicana was the last combat air force flying the North American Mustang, only retiring the type in 1984. FAD 1916 started out life as s/n 44-72364 and during World War Two flew with the Sth Air Force's 353rd Fighter Group, 352nd Fighter Squadron, where it was named Upupa Epops. After the war, it was transferred to the Royal Swedish Air Force where it flew as serial 26061 before being sold to the Dominican Republic. Currently, this aircraft is at WestPac Restorations, Rialto, California, where it is enjoying a ground-up restoration back to its Upupa Epops configuration for the Historic Flying Collection.

Ross Grady displays his Cavalier Mk. 2 C-GMUS (rebuild completed by Cavalier on 12 February 1968 as s/n 67-22581 for the Military Assistant Program) in its Fuerza Aerea Boliviana camouflage scheme. The aircraft was originally acquired by Bolivia during the

the early part of 1968 and disposed of in August 1978 in trade for armed Silver Stars - the Bolivanians getting a good solid ten years of service. Note that the tip tanks supplied with the Cavalier machines were quickly removed once in service and not restored for civilian use. Ross recently sold his Mustang and the new owner is having the plane rebuilt from the ground up.

The one thing certain about our surviving population ofMustangs is that nothing ever stays the same! Who would have ever thought that the potent racing P-51 Stiletto would eventually become a dual control TF-- 51D? Originally built by Dave Zeuschel for owner Alan Preston, Stiletto was, and still is, the most radical racing Mustang ever built. It took a lot of reconstruction but the racer finally emerged as this TF-51 which was being flown by owner David Jeansonne over the Gulf of Mexico during April 1998. Unfortunately, Jeansonne would die in the crash of an Aerovodochody L-39C Albatros and the TF is now with a new owner.

Gerry Beck flying Ten Air's Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation CA-18 Mustang Mk. 22 markings of 345th Fighter Group ace Colonel Richard Turner's Short Fuse Force as A68-198, the restored fighter now operates as N286JB from its Anoka, Minnesota, base.