Air Power Series>1:48 die-cast display model>P-51>HA7706

General Background

Later in WWII the Allied bombers were flying deep into Germany but suffered tremendous losses because of the lack of range the fighter escorts had. German fighters would wait beyond the range of the Allied fighters and then attack the vulnerable bombers. Once the P-51 called Mustang by the British had the Allison engine replaced with a British Merlin it possessed the high performance that had been lacking. With drop tanks the P-51 had the range to escort bombers all the way to Berlin and back.

The Aircraft

2nd Squadron, South African Air Force sailed to Japan on September 25, 1950. There they received training on the F-51D Mustang supplied by the USAF. When they were ready the 2nd Sq., SAAF became one of four squadrons assigned to the USAF 18th Fighter-Bomber Wing. The 2nd flew their first combat mission in Korea on November 19, 1950 and on the 30th moved to their new base K-13 near Chinhae. The 2nd Squadron insignia and name “Cheetah Squadron” was adopted because of the two cheetah cubs they brought with them. Another first when the 2nd came to Korea was the use of the Springbok (antelope) in the center of their roundel. The Cheetahs main role was close air support, interdiction flights against enemy logistics and communication and providing air protection during rescue operations. Unfortunately the aircraft #361 ex USAF 44-74863 and named “Miss Marunouchi” was written off on October 22, 1952 when Slt B.M. Forsyth was wounded in combat and made a forced landing. The 2nd flew their Mustangs in 2,890 missions and 10,373 individual combat sorties. Out of the original 95 Mustangs they started with there were 74 lost due to accidents and combat. The loss ratio for the SAAF pilots in Korea was 1 out of every 6.

Specifications :

Tasks:	Dive-bomber, bomber-escort, ground-attack, interceptor, photo recon
Number Produced All Variants:	14,819
Dimensions
Height:	13 ft 8 in (4.16 m)
Wingspan:	37 ft (11.27 m)
Length:	32 ft 3 in (9.82 m)
Weight
Empty:	7,125 lb (3,232 kg)
Gross:	10,100 lb (4,581 kg)
Maximum Take-off:	11,600 lb (5,262 kg)
Performance
Engine:	Packard Merlin two-staged supercharged V-1650-7, 12 cylinder V engine 1,695 hp.
Maximum Speed:	437 mph (703 km/h)
Ceiling:	41,900 ft (12,771 m)
Range:	950 miles (1,529 km)
Maximum Range:	2,300 miles (3,701 km)
Armament	(6) .50 caliber MG
	Maximum External Bomb Load – 2,000 lb (907 kg)
	Or (4) .5 inch rockets