8/7/2019 P-51 Mustang Poster

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The paint scheme on the P-51D model shown below is similarto that of the 380th Fighter Squadron based in France

during Aug. 1944. (Identification numbersand letters are fictitious) The model also

features the dorsal fillet added to latemodel P-51Ds to increase lateral stability.

“Big Jim” Howard and the 354th Fighter Group

Continuedimprovementsto P-51s throughout thewar included moving thecarburetor scoop from the topof the nose to a point under thespinner and increasing the sizeof the leading edge of bothwings at the root.

Mustangs featured either 75-gallonteardrop-shapedexternal fuel tanksor 110-galllon tanks made partially ofcompressed paper (shown here) to addto the planes’ range.

Pilots’ favorite improvementto the P-51D: the bubblecanopy that allowed a 360-degree view.

Compared to the four guns in earlier versions, the P-51Dfeatured a total of six .50-caliber machine guns (threein each wing). They could also be equipped with up totwo 1,000-pound bombs and ten 5-inch rockets.

Maj. George Preddy, the top Mustang ace of WWII, on Aug. 6,1944, after he downed six German Me-109s.

William H. Allen 55 09-05-44 5 Heinkel 111Ernest E. Bankey 364 12-27-44 4 FW190, 1.5 Me109William R. Beyer 361 09-27-44 5 FW190Wayne K. Blickenstaff 353 03-24-45 3 FW190, 2 Me109Donald S. Bryan 352 01-02-44 5 FW190Bruce W. Carr 354 04-02-45 3 FW190, 2 Me109Leonard K. Carson 357 11-27-44 5 FW190J.S. Daniel 339 11-26-44 5 FW190Robert A. Elder 353 03-24-45 4 FW190, 1 Me109William J. Hovde 355 12-05-44 4.5 FW190, 1 Me109William H. Lewis 55 09-05-44 5 trainersCarl J. Luksic 352 05-08-44 4 FW190, 1 Me109Edward O. McComas 23 12-23-44 5 OscarGordon H. McDaniel 325 04-14-44 5 FW190George E. Preddy 352 08-06-44 6 Me109William A. Shomo 82 TRS 01-11-45 6 Tony, 1 BettyWilliam T. Whisner 352 11-21-44 5 FW190Sidney S. Woods 4 03-22-45 5 FW190Charles E. Yeager 357 10-22-44 5 Me109

WWII P-51 “ACES-IN-A-DAY”

  Name Unit Date Shot down

Maj. Dominic S. Gentile of Piqua was adecorated pilot with the legendary Royal

Air Force Eagle Squadron No. 133until1942, when he transferred to theUnited States Army Air Force 336th FighterSquadron, Fourth Fighter Group of theEighth Air Force. Flying “Shangri-La,” a P-51B Mustang, he became one of the war'smost famous fighter aces. On April 5, 1944,at age 23, Gentile broke World War I aceCapt. Eddie Rickenbacker’s record of 26enemy aircraft downed in combat. Hefinished his tour with more than 30 airand ground victories. His decorationsincluded the Distinguished Service Cross,the Silver Star, and the Distinguished FlyingCross, among numerous others. From1944 through 1946, Gentile worked as atest pilot at Wright Field in Dayton. Gentile

died in a jet trainercrash in 1951 and

was inductedinto theNationalAviation Hallof Fame in1995.

North American P-

“We sensed it was special, even before we measured it against what the enemy pilots were flying.” 

~from “To Fly and Fight, Memoirs of a TripleAce,”by Clarence 'Bud' Anderson (1990).

Originally developed by request of theRoyal Air Force to replenish losses sufferedin the Battle of Britain, then embraced bythe United States Army Air Force, the firstP-51s debuted in combat in May, 1942.Constant retooling resulted in the P-51A(Mustang II), with a top speed of 409 mphat 10,000 feet.

Efforts to improve the performance ofthe P-51s led to the installation of theRolls-Royce V-1650 Merlin engine, whichin turn led to muchimproved speedand altitudenumbers (430 mphat 25,000 feet). InDecember, 1943,these Merlin-powered P-51Bsfirst enteredcombat overEurope asexcellent high-altitude escorts toB-17 and B-24bombers The P-51D remedied twonagging problems ofthe early versions.In P-51Bs the 4, .50-caliber guns in thewings did notprovide enough firepower and oftenjammed. The D version added anothergun to each wing and positioned the gunsparallel to the plane of the wings ratherthan parallel to the ground as in earlierversions.in the early P51s were addressed withthe introduction of the distinctive bubblecanopy of the P-51D, giving pilots a full360-degree view.

By war's end, P-51s had destroyed4,950 enemy aircraft in the air, more

than any other fighter in Europe. Between1941-5, the USAAF ordered 14,855Mustangs, of which 7,956 were P-51Ds.From North Africa to Europe to the Pacific,

where they escorted B-29s to Japanfrom Iwo Jima, Mustangs served innearly every combat zone.

P-51s contin-ued to serve longafter many of theirWWII-era peers,performingadmirably in theKorean War as the

leading fighter-bombers in the“jet war” untilwithdrawn fromcombat in 1953.

Whether or notthe Mustang wasthe “best” fighterever built, mostaviation historiansagree that its range,maneuverabilty andendurance at the veryleast helped turn the tide

of the air war in Europe in WWII.

The Allison engines in the first Mustangshad limited high-altitude performance.In 1943, the Allison was replaced withthe supercharged Rolls-Royce Merlin(above) and the P-51 became thedominant Allied long-range bomberescort and fighter.

The Right Stuff

The cockpit of a WWII-era P-51.

Two .50-caliber guns in eachwing of early P-51s weremounted parallel to the groundand tended to jam whenmaneuvering. The P-51Dfeatured three guns in each wingmounted parallel to the plane ofthe wing to solve the jammingproblem and add firepower.

Don Gentile of Piqua

One of the best fighter

designs of World War II

North American P-51A in flight.

A series of special pages focusing on the significant machines, events

DaytonDaily News THE GREAT PLANES

The 354th Fighter Group, (356th, 355thand 353rd Fighter Squadrons) was knownas the “Pioneer Mustang Group” because itwas the first to fly the improved Rolls RoyceMerlin engine-equipped P-51B fighters aslong-range bomber escort. The new planeshad the range and altitude capabilities toeffectively engage German fighters deep inenemy territory. By war’s end the 354th’saccomplishments included: the top scoringfighter unit (the 353rd FS had more aerialvictories than any other fighter squadron inany theater during the war), a total of 44aces, including the only fighter pilot, Maj.James H. Howard, to be awarded the Medalof Honor in Northern Europe.

Howard, the 356th’s CO, had seen ex-tensive combat with the American VolunteerGroup against the Japanese over Burma and

China. On Jan. 11, 1944, he found himselfthe only fighter between a group of B-17sof the 401st Bomber Group and a largeformation of enemy fighters. Howard doveagain and again into the enemy ranks,scattering planes and, according toobservers, shooting down at least sixfighters. The CO of the 401st describedHoward’s heroism: “Your unprecedentedaction in flying your P-51 alone andunaided into a swarm of (fighters)estimated between 30 and 40. . . is afeat deserving of the highestcommendation and praise. The factthat the odds were overwhelmimglyagainst you and that you had no hopeof receiving assistance. . . did not deteryou in your determination to engage theenemy.”

By World War II's end, P-51s had destroyed 4,950 enemy aircraftin the air, more than any other fighter in Europe. The plane hasbeen called everything from one of the best fighters ever developedto “the plane that won the war.” But as noted military airpowerexpert Bert Kinzey has written, “ The war was won by people.” Pilotslike Bud Anderson Jr. and Chuck Yeager of the 357th Fighter Group

epitomized the aptitude and attitude that the air war demanded.In his book To Fly and Fight , Anderson wrote, “I didn't wonder ifI'd just made a new bride a widow, or if he might have had kids. . .I may have given some thought to how many of my friends he hadkilled, or might have killed in the future, or how many bombers hemight have shot down had he lived. . . From what I could tell, hehadn't been overly concerned about me.”

Yeager, after being shot down behind enemy lines, eludingcapture and returning to England with the aid of the French resistance– thus earning an automatic ticket home – protested all the way toGen. Eisenhower that he didn’t want to leave a job unfinished.Yeager’s persistence convinced the Allied commander that he shouldbe allowed to return to combat, where he later shot down fiveGerman fighters in a single day.

George E. Preddy, Jr. 352 23.83 26.83John C. Meyer 352 21 24Don S. Gentile 4 16.5 21.8Ray S. Wetmore 359 17 21.25John J. Voll 31 21 21Leonard K. Carson 357 18.5 18.5Glenn T. Eagleston 354 18.5 18.5John C. Herbst 23 14 18John B. England 357 17.5 17.5John F. Thornell, Jr. 352 11 17.25James S. Varnell, Jr. 52 17 17John T. Godfrey 4 13.83 16.33C la re nce E. An de rs on , J r. 3 57 1 6.2 5 16 .25Richard A. Peterson 357 15.5 15.5William T. Whisner 352 14.5 15.5Samuel J. Brown 31 15.5 15.5Jack T. Bradley 354 15 15Ralph K. Hofer 4 13 15Bruce W. Carr 363, 354 15 15

WWII P-51 TRIPLE ACES (15 victories)Name Group P-51 air Total air

victories victories

Maj. George Preddy, the top Mustang ace of WWII, on Aug. 6,1944, after he downed six German Me-109s.