Bill Lyons tells what it was like flying the North American P-51D Mustang in WWII, and why it was the easiest airplane that he ever flew.
Editor: Sean Mullany
Director: Andrew Horton
Photos: Bill Lyons
Captions: Jared de Kruijff
#aviation #history #wwii
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Do you agree with Bill Lyons about the P-51 being the easiest plane to fly?
I Think I bought a diesel F 250 early 2000's off a P 51 pilot!
Dude lived In Whittier CA lived around the corner from the Post Office off Whittier Blvd.
He had a buddy over at the same time, that dude was with a transport pilot who flew the Hump as I recall their stories?
His Wife was drilling holes in me with her eyes as they told me their stories at the kitchen table doing the paperwork.
I MISS THIS GENERATION! Thanks Guys!
My father B’s, C’s, & D’s. Eighth AF 352nd FG out of RAF Bodney. The "Blue Nose Bastards of Bodney." Last aircraft #4143849 PE-V "Little Buster II." Flew with Preddy, Whisner, JC Meyer, Don Bryan, and the other aces. Three confirmed. DFC, AM, PUC. Had to bail out once over the North Sea due to fuel starvation after a long escort mission (that's where the FIRST "Little Buster" lies to this day). Rescued by a Brit minesweeper. Flew D-Day cover, Schweinfurt, Asch, the Ardenne aka Battle of the Bulge, and numerous other missions. He once told me that the word was that when Göring first saw allied bombers over Berlin being ESCORTED by P51's in March of '44 he commented "The war is lost."
I'm a little surprised by this statement. As far as I know, when the Mustang was fully fueled at takeoff, it was anything but easy to control, since the center of gravity shifted far aft. Its good flight characteristics didn’t return until that fuel tank was empty. As I said, this is all just hearsay. Unfortunately, I’ve never had the opportunity to fly a Mustang myself. That’s a problem for almost everyone born after World War II. 😅
My father flew the Mustang in the Korean War. 77 Sqdn.
Hero
I'm actually surprised by this revelation from him. I guess having flown the AT-6 prior, it makes sense.