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Many people consider the P-51 Mustang the best fighter of World War II. Its combination of speed, range, maneuverability, and firepower gave it great versatility. Its use in all major theaters of the war included long-range high-altitude escort, strafing, and photo reconnaissance.
Display Status
Display Status
The Museum has two P-51 Mustangs.
The P-51C Mustang is on display in the Boeing Aviation Hangar at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, VA.
The P-51D Mustang is not on display at the National Air and Space Museum. It is either on loan or in storage.
North American P-51D
North American P-51D
Tapered Wing Tip
Tapered Wing Tip
Originally developed by North American for the British, the Mustang was later ordered in large quantities by the U.S. Army Air Forces. This P-51D is displayed at the Museum (pictured above) in the markings of the 351st Fighter Squadron, 353rd Fighter Group, Eighth Air Force.
What is significant about the design of the Museum's P-51D?
What is significant about the design of the Museum's P-51D?
The most significant D-model features were a rear fuselage reduced in height to accommodate a new bubble canopy and an increase in armament from 4 to 6 fifty-caliber machine guns. The Air Force did not withdraw P-51s from service until 1957
P-51C Mustang, "Excalibur III"
"Nearly every flight that was made by Excalibur III broke some kind of record," according to this P-51C Mustang’s last pilot/owner, Capt. Charles F. Blair, Jr.
"Nearly every flight that was made by Excalibur III broke some kind of record," according to this P-51C Mustang’s last pilot/owner, Capt. Charles F. Blair, Jr.
Excalibur III first belonged to famed aviator A. Paul Mantz, who added extra fuel tanks for long-distance racing to this standard P-51C fighter. With it Mantz won the 1946 and 1947 Bendix air race and set a transcontinental speed record in 1947 when the airplane was named Blaze of Noon.
How was the Museum's P-51C Mustang modified for long-distance racing?
How was the Museum's P-51C Mustang modified for long-distance racing?
To eliminate the need for an intermediate stop, Mantz modified the plane, converting the wing into a large fuel tank by sealing the interior. The added fuel capacity of this “wetwing" more than doubled the range of the airplane.
Capt. Charles F. Blair purchased Mantz's P-51C Mustang in 1949 and renamed it Excalibur III, after the Sikorsky VS-44 flying boat he flew for American Export Airlines.
On May 29, 1951, Capt. Charles F. Blair flew Excalibur III from Norway across the North Pole to Alaska in a record-setting 10½ hours. Using a system of carefully plotted "sun lines" he developed, Blair was able to navigate with precision where conventional magnetic compasses often failed. Four months earlier, he had flown Excalibur III from New York to London in less than 8 hours, breaking the existing mark by over an hour.
Read more about Charles F. Blair here.
Charles F. Blair, Jr. poses in the cockpit of his North American P-51C Mustang "Excalibur III."
The fast and powerful P-51 Mustang:
The fast and powerful P-51 Mustang:
For more on the Mustang P-51, look at our pages here for the P-51C and here for the P-51D.
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