This was taken from Chuck Hawks web site which takes a look of fighters during WWII. I think from where we stand today and look back we could loose the importance perspective of the P-51 from the men that fought in campaign's across the world while we only see this plane still being flown today just for sport. I only offer this article as information but suggest to read all about the selection of aircraft the time the P-51 was flown and then you can make your own conclusion from his web site. I only respectfully suggest you might not realize of how this aircraft could have turn the war and other campaign's. This can bring about in essence of the statement of it being "King" while seeing it flight for sport today.
For the complete article please go to: <http://www.chuckhawks.com/best_fighter_planes.htm>
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The Best Fighter Planes of World War II
The Bf 109, Spitfire, FW 190, P-51, Yak-3, A6M Zero, P-38, F4U and Ki-84
By Chuck Hawks
Due to the rapid advance of technology, the best fighter early in the war was never the best fighter late in the war.
European Theater, Early Period
In the European Theater of Operations, early years, there were two absolute standout fighter planes. Both were severely limited in range, but in a dogfight they reigned supreme in the ETO. Of course, I am talking about the British Supermarine Spitfire and the German Messerschmitt Bf 109.
The former was designed by R. J. Mitchell and the latter by Willie Messerschmitt. They were the standout air superiority fighters of the early years of the war in Europe and the leading members of the cast that fought the most famous air battle of them all, the Battle of Britain (not to slight the Hawker Hurricane, designed by Sidney Camm, which actually out numbered the Spitfire on the British side of the famous battle and scored more victories over German airplanes.
European Theater, Later Period
After the first couple of years, in the European theater, things become more complicated. During the 1939, 1940, and 1941, the Spitfire and Messerschmitt Bf 109 were clearly the dominant fighters. However, as the war wore on, many new designs entered combat.
In 1942 (really beginning late in 1941) the Focke-Wulf 190 appeared in numbers and immediately established a measure of superiority over the Spitfire Mk. V, already hard pressed by the Bf 109F. In 1942, the first year of the war for the U.S., American P-39 and P-40 fighters were generally out performed by the German Messerschmitt and Focke-Wulf fighters and things looked a bit bleak for the Allies. However, when the Spitfire Mk. IX and the P-38 started to make their presence felt, things began to improve for the Allies.
In the Spring of 1943, the P-47B went into operation in England. The Focke-Wulf 190, up until now the premier fighter in the theater, was suddenly hard pressed by the big American fighter, particularly at high altitude. In mid-1943 the much improved P-38J started to arrive and the pressure on the Germans increased. The arrival at the end of 1943 of the P-51B, the long range escort fighter the Americans so desperately needed, marked the beginning of the end for the Luftwaffe. Able to escort the bombers all the way to Berlin and back, the Mustang left the Luftwaffe no place to regroup and train. The P-51 did to the Luftwaffe what the Bf 109 did not have the range to do to the RAF earlier in the war.
So while all of the above fighters played an important part in the war, it was the P-51 that turned out to be decisive. The Americans could have won their daylight air war over Germany with the improved P-38J and L or P-47D, both of which appeared in 1944, but in fact it was the P-51, more than any other single fighter, that did it. So it seems only fair to examine first the FW 190 and then the P-51 Mustang, as the two successive "bests" of the later part of the European war.
North American P-51 Mustang
Many top E.T.O. aces flew the P-51 Mustang. These included Captain Don Gentile (35 victories), Captain John Godfrey (31 victories), Colonel Eagleston (23 victories), Major James Howard (the only American ace in both theaters of the war--6 victories in China flying P-40's and 6 victories in Europe flying P-51's), Chuck Yeager (who later became the first man to break the sound barrier) and Colonel Donald Blakeslee (15 victories and C.O. of the famous 4th Fighter Group). The 4th FG destroyed over 1,000 German aircraft, more than any other American fighter group in WW II.
The Mustang story began in 1940 when the British contacted North American Aviation with a request to build fighters for the RAF. North American was willing, and they offered to design and build a new fighter that would meet British requirements, and be easy to mass produce. In only 100 days NAA rolled out the first prototype Mustang. By November 1941 the first of over 600 aircraft produced under British contract were delivered to the RAF.
The new fighter incorporated some advanced ideas, in particular a laminar flow wing of thin cross section, which allowed the Mustang to avoid most of the "compressibility" dive problems that plagued many other high performance fighters of the time. Two of the first ten Mustangs built were taken to Wright Field, at Dayton Ohio, for testing by the AAF, which designated them XP-51.
The 1,150 hp. Allison F-series V-12 powered the early Mustang models. This resulted in poor high altitude performance, so the RAF used their Mustang I (P-51) and II (P-51A) models for low altitude ground attack and reconnaissance duties.
The Mustang I had a top speed of 370 m.p.h. at 15,000 ft. Best climb at 11,300 ft. was 1,980 ft./min. An assortment of .30 and .50 caliber machine guns were carried, but the Mustang IA was armed with 4-20mm cannon. Handling and maneuverability were good. Like the FW 190, the P-51 was a pilot's airplane.
P-51A (Mustang II) production was divided between America and Britain. This model standardized armament as 4-.50 cal MG. (two per wing). There were ground attack versions of the P 51A in U.S. service, designated A-36A, which served the AAF in the North African campaign. There were also specialized photo reconnaissance versions of all major Mustang models, the F-6 series.
The decision was made to mass produce the outstanding Merlin engine under license in the United States. The P-51B and C models (Mustang III's in Britian), which entered service in December of 1943, were powered by the new Packard-built version of the Merlin V-12, driving a four bladed propeller. At the same time, the airframe was strengthened, the radiator was re-designed, the ailerons were improved, and racks for long range drop tanks or bombs were added under the wings.
The 1,450 hp. Packard/Merlin engine (1,595 hp. war emergency rating) gave the P-51B-7 a top speed of 445 m.p.h. Best climb was 3,320 ft./min. at 10,000 ft. The new Mustang carried 4-.50 caliber MG (two per wing), and up to 1,000 lbs. of external stores. Its range was an astounding 2,200 miles with two 150 gal. drop tanks. Endurance with drop tanks was 8.7 hours.
The new engine completely changed the character of the Mustang, turning it into a high altitude fighter suitable for bomber escort missions. It came at a crucial moment for the AAF daylight bombing campaign. Luftwaffe fighters were taking such a toll of un-escorted heavy bombers that the losses were becoming unsupportable. The great range of the P-51B-7 allowed it to escort the heavy bombers all the way to their targets deep inside Germany. In March of 1944, Mustangs went to Berlin. Eighth Air Force bomber losses plummeted, while Luftwaffe fighter losses skyrocketed.
Later in 1944 the famous P-51D model arrived. It sported a "tear drop" canopy for better all around vision and a more powerful 1,790 hp. version of the Packard/Merlin engine, along with many detail improvements. The armament was increased to 6-.50 caliber wing MG and all manner of external stores could be carried. Recognition of the D model is easy because of its teardrop canopy and the large fillet fin added in front of the vertical stabilizer. For the Luftwaffe, the end was at hand.
The final major production version of the Mustang was the P-51H. This re-designed model incorporated major improvements, as extensive in scope as those incorporated into the FW 190D or Spitfire Mk. 22.
In the H model, the structure was increased in strength by 10%, to allow higher "g" loads in combat maneuvers. No structural part was left in common with earlier models. Streamlining was improved to increase speed and stability was increased. A new version of the Packard/Merlin, incorporating water injection, delivered over 2000 hp. These changes resulted in the finest American fighter of the war. Speed was 486 m.p.h. at 30,000 ft. best climb rate was 5,350 ft./min. at 5,000 ft. Service ceiling was 41,600 ft.
Unlike most other American piston engine fighters, which were withdrawn from service soon after the end of WW II, the Mustang fought on, doing valuable ground support work in the Korean War. It was adopted by many other nations, too numerous to list here, and remained in service in some countries into the 1960's.