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North American P-51D Mustang

The P-51D was the most numerous Mustang variant. Its cut-down rear fuselage and bubble canopy improved visibility, while six .50-caliber machine guns and the Packard-built Merlin engine supported long-range escort and fighter-bomber missions.

North American P-51D Mustang
NASA/Jim Ross · Stored/public JPEG is byte-identical to NASA canonical EC00-0277-1 large asset (1920x1536, SHA-256 9db9233f4907225b84e828d5abb85b6231eb6bc98313ee0f25ea1bbfb977f9ce; NASA API canonical ~large asset has the same SHA-256). NASA Images API metadata identifies the image as "A restored NACA P-51D Mustang in flight" and credits NASA/Jim Ross; the exact NASA image-detail page identifies the North American P-51D Mustang and provides the corresponding NASA image: https://www.nasa.gov/image-detail/north-american-p-51d-mustang-3/. Current NASA Images and Media Usage Guidelines state that NASA content generally is not subject to U.S. copyright and may be used factually or informationally with NASA acknowledged; NASA-hosted third-party content is marked and NASA use does not convey rights; commercial use must not imply endorsement and NASA logos and identifiers remain protected: https://www.nasa.gov/nasa-brand-center/images-and-media/. This is an asset-level, conservative factual/editorial reuse basis with NASA/Jim Ross attribution, not a blanket license for promotional content, merchandise, NASA branding, or endorsement. · Source
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Identity

Aliases
P-51D MustangF-51D Mustang
Family Name
P-51
Full Name
North American P-51D Mustang
Roles
military
Status
retired
Type
aircraft
Variant Name
D

Details

Aircraft Specs
Configuration
fixed_wing
Max Takeoff Mass Kg
5,488
Operating Modes
land
Takeoff Landing Capabilities
conventional
Description
The P-51D was the most numerous Mustang variant. Its cut-down rear fuselage and bubble canopy improved visibility, while six .50-caliber machine guns and the Packard-built Merlin engine supported long-range escort and fighter-bomber missions.
Dimensions
Height M
4.17
Manufacturer
Operator
Parent Vehicle Family
Propulsion Configurations
  • Entries
    • Count
      1
      Placement
      fuselage
      Propulsion System
      Role
      main
      Stage
      airframe
      Variant Notes
      One Packard-built Rolls-Royce Merlin V-1650 liquid-cooled piston engine in the forward fuselage.
    Name
    P-51D Packard V-1650 Merlin installation
    Notes
    The U.S. Air Force National Museum identifies the North American P-51D with one Packard-built Rolls-Royce Merlin V-1650 piston engine; this exact relationship is bounded to the D variant.

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Creation Time
July 13, 2026 at 09:29:12 UTC
Updated Time
August 14, 2026 at 19:56:50 UTC