P-51 Mustang

Hi! In 1940, I was designed as the NA-73 at Britain's request. My Allison engine and I showed promise, and in 1941, AAF started purchasing me mostly for photo recon and ground support. Then, later in '42, I was tested using the Roll-Royce "Merlin" engine, and I proved to be a very good airplane. I first entered Combat in 1943 over Europe. I was also a high-altitude escort for Flying Fortresses (B-17s) and Liberators (B-24s). By the end of the war, I had shot down 4950 enemy aircraft.I Have an internal fuel capacity of 105 gallons, giving me a range of 950 mils at 362 miles an hour at 25000 feet. I have six .50 cal. wing-mounted machine guns with 1880 total rounds.I was one of the first fighters to use a laminar flow airfoil, a high speed wing shape that became standard on most later high performance fighters.I have a wingspan of 37 feet and 5 inches, a length of 32 feet and 2.5 inches, and a height of 13 feet and 8 inches.My empty weight is 7,125 pounds, with an operational weight of 11.600 pounds.My maximum speed is 437 mph, but the fastest a P-51 has ever flown was 512 mph. My friend Alex Levin was at the Reno Air Races in 2003 when it happened! I believe it was Dago Red that broke the speed record for a P-51, and that was because he had very severely cropped (shortened) wings. I have a service ceiling of 41900 feet.