Later in WWII the Allied bombers were flying deep into Germany but suffered tremendous
losses because of the lack of range the fighter escorts had. German fighters would wait
beyond the range of the Allied fighters and then attack the vulnerable bombers. Once the P-
51 called Mustang by the British had the Allison engine replaced with a British Merlin it
possessed the high performance that had been lacking. With drop tanks the P-51 had the
range to escort bombers all the way to Berlin and back.

In late 1945 the RCAF purchased 100 P-51D Mustangs from the U.S.. These aircraft went to
2 regular fighter squadrons and 6 auxiliary fighter squadrons. On January 11, 1951 one P-
51D was delivered as 9274 c/n 122-40548. It first served with the 442 Squadron, then 403
Squadron before it was coded AC*274 with the 402 Squadron “City of Winnipeg” at
Stevenson Field, Manitoba. In 1956 Canada declared the P-51 obsolete but some continued
to be used until the early 1960’s. P-51D AC*274 was removed from service on February 27,
1959 and SOC (Struck Off Charge) on May 14, 1959 and sold.

Specifications for the North American Aviation P-51D Mustang

Tasks – Dive-bomber, bomber-escort, ground-attack, interceptor, photo recon

Number Produced All Variants – 14,819

Dimensions
Wing Span – 37 ft   (11.27 m)
Length – 32 ft 3 in   (9.82 m)
Height – 13 ft 8 in   (4.16 m)

Weight
Empty – 7,125 lb   (3,232 kg)
Gross – 10,100 lb   (4,581 kg)
Maximum Take-off – 11,600 lb   (5,262 kg)

Performance
Engine – Packard Merlin two-staged supercharged V-1650-7, 12 cylinder V engine 1,695 hp.
Maximum Speed – 437 mph   (703 km/h)
Ceiling – 41,900 ft   (12,771 m)
Range – 950 miles   (1,529 km)
Maximum Range – 2,300 miles   (3,701 km)

Armament
6 x .50 caliber MG
Maximum External Bomb Load – 2,000 lb   (907 kg)
Or 4 x .5 inch rockets.

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