Air Power Series>1:48 die-cast display model>P-51>HA7745

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

P-51K Mustang 44-72035 “Tall In The Saddle” was delivered to the USAAF on December 21, 1944. Originally destined for the 8th AF in England it was soon changed to the Mediterranean Theater of Operations with the 15th AF in Italy. 44-72035 was assigned to the 332nd FG/99th FS known then as the “Red Tails” and later “Tuskegee Airmen”. The squadron provided bomber escort and ground attack sweeps over Germany, Austria and Czechoslovakia. Pilot George Hardy flew many missions in this aircraft and “Tall In The Saddle” survived WWII wearing many bullet hole repairs.

Specifications :

Specifications for the North American Aviation P-51D Mustang The main difference between the D variant and the K variant was the use of the Aeroproducts propeller on the K instead of the Hamilton Standard propeller that was unavailable around the time of these P-51s being produced. However some K’s will be seen with Hamilton Standard because of field changes.
Hamilton Standard Prop:	11 ft 2 ins, 4 blades, some were cuffed and some weren’t and had square tipped blades (paddle blade)
Aeroproducts propeller:	11 ft , 4 blades
Total K built:	1,500
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