Flying the North American P-51 Mustang

A triple Ace reports from the cockpit

A triple Ace reports from the cockpit

The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is my all-time favorite airplane. I have other favorites too, but the P-51 got me through

WW II so well that it is the obvious choice for nostalgic reasons alone. The Mustang is a beautiful airplane to look at, and it has such a great, distinctive sound. There are so many legendary stories about the Mustang that it must be every flyboy’s favorite WW II fighter, and I think most objective researchers would agree that it was the best all-around WW II combat fighter. But why was the Mustang so great? In a nutshell, because of its advanced design and overall performance. It was superior in many ways, and if it wasn’t the best in a particular area, it was, at least, very competitive.