The Dambusters: Dogfight From World War II

P-51 Mustang V 109s

Dogfight From World War II - More amazing video clips are a click away

P-51D Mustang

General characteristics

* Crew: 1
* Length: 32 ft 3 in (9.83 m)
* Wingspan: 37 ft 0 in (11.28 m)
* Height: 13 ft 8 in (4.17 m)
* Wing area: 235 ft² (21.83 m²)
* Empty weight: 7,635 lb (3,465 kg)
* Loaded weight: 9,200 lb (4,175 kg)
* Max takeoff weight: 12,100 lb (5,490 kg)
* Powerplant: 1× Packard Merlin V-1650-7 liquid-cooled supercharged V-12, 1,490 hp (1,111 kW) at 3,000 rpm;[79] 1,720 hp (1,282 kW) at WEP

Performance

* Maximum speed: 437 mph (703 km/h) at 25,000 ft (7,620 m)
* Cruise speed: 362 mph (580 km/h)
* Stall speed: 100 mph (160 km/h)
* Range: 1,650 mi (2,755 km) with external tanks
* Service ceiling 41,900 ft (12,770 m)
* Rate of climb: 3,200 ft/min (16.3 m/s)
* Wing loading: 39 lb/ft² (192 kg/m²)
* Power/mass: 0.18 hp/lb (300 W/kg)
* Lift-to-drag ratio: 14.6
* Recommended Mach limit 0.8

1 comment:

Dan Oja said...: I first ran into the dam busters when researching the WWII experiences of the 332nd Engineers.

Apparently they were ordered to build a dam to very strict specifications in England. Their protests that the design didn't make sense for the terrain were disregarded.

It wasn't until sometime later that they learned that the dam they constructed was was apparently used to train the dam busters.

I guess it just goes to show that sometimes there IS a purpose behind otherwise inexplicable military decisions. ;-); 23 December 2008 at 21:57