FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1942
1942 - 1759.PDF
AUGUST 20TH, 1942 FLIGHT 209 ' FlillhCf photo(imi>li. , An Army Co-operation Mustang on a low reconnaissance flight. This view emphasises the straight lines of the~Mustang and the disposition of the tailplane surfaces. UNOBTRUSIVE CLEVERNESS A Fighter Design Which Merits Close Study : North American Mustang Embodies Many Interesting Features I N the pioneering days of flying we used to say that if an aircraft looked right, it was right. The saying had a deal of truth in it, but not, of course, the whole truth, and it might have been more to the point to have said that if it looked wrong it was wrong. We are reminded of these contemplations by the North American Mustang, which has now gone into service with Army co-operation squadrons of the R.A.F. This fighter, which bears the works type numbers NA-73 and is i-nown to the U.S. Arm *, Air Forces ™5s the P-51, is one of the most hand some fighters in existence. And in this instance it not only looks right, it is right. There was a time when this excel lent aircraft came near being a square peg in a round hole, but fortunately its merits were realised in time, and it was allocated to Army co-operation work,* for which its 1,150 h.p. Allison engine with single-stage blower makes it eminently suited. In point of fact, with a two-stage blower and more powerful engine, there appears to be no reason why the Mustang should not do equally well on other duties. The Mustang is a product of North American Aviation, Inc., of Ingle- wood, California. The same firm produced the B-25 Mitchell, the high speed medium bomber used in the : NORTH AMERICAN MUSTANG (N.A. 73) i WING SPAN : 37ft. 3in. Wing area : 236 sq. ft. • LENGTH ; 31ft. 3in. : • HEICHT (at rest) : 8ft. 8in. UNDERCARRIAGE : Wide Trade (lift. 10in.), fully retractable inward:;. : Tail wheel also retractable. : ENGINE : One liquid-cooled Allison inline type F.3.R. of 1,150 h.p. with I single-stage supercharger. • AIRSCREW : Hamilton 3-blade, constant-speed tvpe. RADIATOR : Special dual purpose design for both,glycol and oil cooling. : SPEED : No details available, but certainly the fastest Army Co-operation : aircraft in service anywhere. ARMAMENT : Two machine guns synchronised to fire through airscrew, : : two machine guns in each wing. A I raid on Tokio. Comment is often heard on the simi larity in outline between the Me 109 and the Mustang. This similarity, which is superficial only, may be accounted for by the fact that in the year when the Mustang was designed, the chief designer of North American was Mr. E. Schmued, who is reported to have spent, in his younger days, several years in the drawing office of Willy Messer- schmitt. The rather remarkable thing about the Mustang * An article on the Mustang in service with an Army Co-operation squadron appeared in Flight of July 30th..
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
