Country of origin:

United States of America

Description:

Long-range escort fighter and fighter bomber

Power Plant:

[Mustang III]

One 1,264 kw (1,695 hp) Packard V-1650-7 Merlin 12-cylinder VEE liquid-cooled engine

Specifications:

Armament:

Four 12.7 mm (0.5 in) Browning MG53-21 machine guns and two 454 kg (1,000 lb) bombs

History:

Following the decision to fit the Rolls Royce Merlin in the Mustang, the Packard Motor Co began licence production of the engine at its Detroit, Michigan facility, the engine to be fitted to the P-51B. This engine became known as the Merlin 28 in the United Kingdom, as the V-1650-1 in the United States and, when fitted with a Wright designed supercharger, as the V-1650-3.  Independent studies of the Mustang fitted with the Merlin were carried out in the United States and the United Kingdom, the first British aircraft (AL975) being fitted with a Merlin 65, and the first Mustang in the United States fitted with the Merlin being 41-37352.

The P-51B entered production, the first being the P-51B-NA followed by the P-51C-1-NT, the B series being built at North American’s Inglewood, California plant whereas the C series was built at the Company’s Dallas, Texas plant.  The B-1 and C-1 had no fuselage fuel tanks, recognition lights or dorsal fillets but these were fitted later to the P-51C-10, as was the V-1650-7 engine.  The early Merlin powered Mustangs were ordered in large numbers for the RAF and were part of a contract between North American and the British Department of Defence where they became known as the Mustang II, III and IV.

No 3 Squadron RAAF served with the Desert Air Force in support of Allied ground forces in Egypt after arriving in August 1940 and operated a variety of aircraft before becoming part of the Desert Air Force’s 239th Fighter Bomber Wing in the Mediterranean Theatre, the unit in November 1944, after a short conversion course, receiving Mustang IIs and IIIs, using six aircraft to escort a Westland Lysander on 22 November.  Most operations for the weeks thereafter were interdiction strikes against road and rail targets in Italy and Yugoslavia. A number of bridges were attacked and destroyed, and by March 1945 the unit was attacking rail targets, ports and shipping installations. After the fall of German forces the unit carried out patrols of northern areas of Italy and Yugoslavia, the last operation being carried out on 5 May.

A number of the Mustang IIs and IIIs were supplied to the Middle East forces and served extensively with No 3 Squadron, RAAF, and for a short period with No 450 Squadron, as well as a number of British units.  Of the first 16 supplied to the Australian units, 13 came from the British batch serialled in the KH421 to KH640 range and replaced Kittyhawks between August and October 1944.  The other three came from a batch of 300 for the RAF in the serial range FB100 to FB399. A further nine aircraft saw service with No 3 Squadron, these being older, used aircraft, received as attrition replacements and later supplanted by a further three P-51-C-10s.

At the time No 450 Squadron received a mix of P-51C-1s and P-51C-10s (Mk IIIs), as well as one P-51B-1-NA (serial FX880). These were ex-RAF used aircraft. However, as No 450 Squadron was converting to the Kittyhawk at the time, only four aircraft were received and only operated for a short period.  After use in the Middle East the Mustangs were returned to British units and none ever made their way to Australia.