Will the REAL Mustang Please Stand Up?

We seem to have been focussed on Mustang replicas recently (mostly posted by me!), but when all is said and done they are just replicas.

Lurking out there is the grand-daddy original real Mustang and today Ardmore offered a chance to compare both of the Warbirds Mustang aircraft.

ZK-TAF is a North American F 51D model that has been the Warbirds flagship for more than 20 years. The most evocative Mustang model is the P 51D but in 1948 the USAAF changed the designation from P 51 (for pursuit) to F 51 (for fighter). It was first registered in New Zealand to the Alpine Fighter Group on 27/5/86 and was sold to the NZ Historic Aircraft Trust in Auckland on 20/10/88 and then to the P 51 Syndicate of Auckland on 6/9/90

And the Warbirds recently completed T 51 Mustang replica ZK-AKL is owned by Titan T 51 Mustang Ltd of Auckland. This aircraft is a microlight version that is powered by a Rotax 912 motor - compare the propellor sizes!