P-51

also called Mustang one of the finest fighter aircraft of World War II, a single-seat, single-engine, low-wing monoplane that was produced by North American Aviation for Britain's Royal Air Force (RAF) and later was adopted by the U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF). Its prototype was designed to British specifications and first flew in late 1940, just months after the design work began. It went into service in November 1941. With a low-altitude-rated Allison engine and a maximum speed of about 390 miles (630 km) per hour, it was used for low-level tactical photoreconnaissance duties, with a camera mounted behind the pilot. The Mustang was equipped with four .50-calibre and four .30-calibre machine guns, although one model had four 20-millimetre cannons, and another (the A-36A) was a dive bomber for the USAAF. In late 1942 the airframe was adapted for the 1,200-horsepower Rolls-Royce Merlin engine and, starting in late 1943 with the P-51B, was built in vast numbers for the USAAF and some for the RAF. With a maximum speed of about 440 miles (700 km) per hour, the P-51D version (six .50-calibre machine guns, three in each wing) was a superb long-range offensive fighter, escorting U.S. bombers from England to Berlin in 1944 and from Pacific island bases to Tokyo in 1945. It played a significant part in the final defeat of the German Luftwaffe and remained operational until the 1950s, being used for ground attack in the early days of the Korean War.