and 2,700rpm on the prop. A quick scan to
check all is normal and I sweep into a left
turn. The noise seems to go away now we
are moving. The Mustang climbs best at
150kt but I opt for 170 so that I can see
over the nose a bit better. The controls feel
better the faster we go. Like all heavy
metal you don’t so much
move the controls as press on
them to make a roll or a pitch
change. It’s progressive,
balanced and harmonised.
9,000 hrs on the same type
and still loving it, Lee?
Yes−now I get it! (Yesterday
he came back from a check-
ride on a Starfighter. At one point he was
at 600kt down the runway... But we ended
up talking about Mustangs again.)As Good As It Gets
I love that film where Jack Nicholson,
earwigging a psychotherapy group,
declares, “Hey guys, maybe this is as good
as it gets”. But he was wrong. Forget
therapy−they should have spent their
money on a Mustang ride. As we clear the
traffic zone, you might think that we’re
about to embark on a lesson filled with
high speed dives, 260kt loops and massive
G. Well yes, but we also spend as much
time below 100kt, nibbling the buffet andthe supercharger into high gear with just
another innocuous little toggle switch in
the bank at the base of the panel, which
knocks the revs down and the manifold
pressure up. (That little switch and its
action is what made the Merlin-engined
P-51 a game-changer.) Back to ‘low
blower’ and the numbers are
restored, Ts and Ps are in the
green, coolant is at 90°C and
oil at 40°C. (Mental note: next
time I’ll close the canopy first.)
To save time, my instructor
runs through the takeoff
checks as we taxi onto the
runway−one dollar per
second, remember: flaps up and verified,
harness locked, trim six degrees right, zero
and zero, mixture auto rich, prop full
forward, coolant/oil doors auto and
guarded mags both. Radios set, transponder
on (yuk−an unwelcome reminder of the
modern world) fuel boost pump on, fuel
quantity check left and right - and no
venting, temps check (again!) altimeter set,
compass check, hydraulic release T handle
in, strobe lights on and CBs in. We’re
ready to go!
I line up on the runway, stand on the
brakes and push the throttle past 1,500rpm
(generator light out) to 2,300rpm. Wow,
that’s loud! I look at the manifold pressure
gauge to check it’s at thirty inches−if it
isn’t then there’s something wrong and we
would abort−and then release the brakes
as I open the throttle further. That’s really
loud! Surprisingly the rudder just needs
little dabs to keep us straight and it
gets better as we get faster. At 50kt Isimultaneously push the stick forward an
inch, reach forty inches and counter the
impending swerve to the left. That’s really,
really loud. The initial acceleration was
impressive, and with nearly 1,500hp
pulling four tons it’s like a Yak-52 or a
Pitts Special−but it keeps on going. At
100kt a little rearward pressure takes us
cleanly off the runway and now we are
really flying in every sense.
I let the Mustang accelerate as I lean
down and raise the gear lever−which still
doesn’t move as far as I expect it to. At
least I don’t have to change hands like you
do in a Spitfire, risking the throttle coming
back. I then set 42 inches on the throttlehttp://www.pilotweb.aero Pilot April 2015 | 27
You don’t so much move the
controls as press on them tomake a roll or pitch change
Some speed envelope: the T-51’s
‘economy cruise’ is 250kt — and Vne is 440!PHOTO: PAUL BOWEN