Marking Options P-51B Malcolm Hood 1/48

P-51B-10-NA, s/n 42-106451, Maj. George E. Preddy, 487th FS, 352nd FG, 8th AF, Bodney, Great Britain, June 1944

Preddy’s first personal Mustang was a natural metal finish aircraft with blue nose adorned with the yellow inscription “Cripes A’Mighty”. The application of invasion stripes overlapped the HO-P fuselage code which was partially showing through under the white paint. So, an individual letter P was added to the tail surfaces as it was obscured by the invasion stripes on the fuselage. At the time of the invasion, Preddy’s Mustang already had a new type Malcolm Hood cockpit canopy installed. The nose of Preddy’s Mustang was decorated with 12 German crosses as symbols of his victories. Preddy made his last flight in a P-51B on June 12, 1944, six days after the invasion of France, when he claimed another destroyed Bf 109. He then took over the brand new P-51D-5 “Cripes A’Mighty 3rd“. In August 1944, Major Preddy was sent to the United States for retirement, and upon his return in October he assumed command of one of the subordinate squadrons of the 352nd FG, 328th FS. On December 25, in the early hours of the morning, while chasing an Fw 190 over the front, Preddy’s aircraft was accidentally hit by American anti-aircraft fire. He still attempted an emergency landing near an anti-aircraft battery but, as he was fatally wounded, he crashed. In total George Earl Predddy achieved 25 victories and four shared, 22+4 when flying Mustangs (including 5+2 victories in P-51Bs).

P-51B-15-NA, s/n 42-106924, 2nd Lt. Ralph K. Hofer, 334th FS, 4th FG, 8th AF, Debden, Great Britain, June 1944

Light-hearted, perhaps undisciplined, but all the more courageous and charismatic was “Kid” Hofer, one of the USAAF’s most successful fighters. The nickname was based on his youthful appearance and his flowing and by Army standards long hair as well as his prevailing good humor. Until his death, he destroyed 15 enemy aircraft in the air, damaging two and destroying another 14 on the ground. On July 2, 1944, “Kid” participated in the escort of bombers to Budapest from the Italian base Foggia. Prior to reaching the target area, a group of Bf 109 entered the scene, and the aerial battle started. Hofer’s leader had to make an emergency landing due to a malfunction and watched from the ground as a Hungarian Bf 109, sitting on the tail of his Wingman, opened fire. Hofer’s Mustang was apparently only damaged, so he tried to return to the base. Near Mostar, he decided to strafe a German airfield, his P-51B “Salem Representative” was hit by flak and “Kid” Hofer was killed.   

P51B-10-NA, s/n 42-106462, Capt. John B. England, 362nd FS, 357th FG, 8th AF, Leiston, Great Britain, June 1944

The Mustang named U’ve Had It was assigned to the 357th FG at the end of the first week of March 1944 and became the personal aircraft of Capt. John England. It was one of several P-51Bs that received a hasty “half” camouflage paint job on the upper fuselage and wings in anticipation of operations from continental forward field airfields which ultimately did not occur due to the Mustangs’ extraordinary range and endurance. England flew the U’ve Had It until June 1944, scoring three kills out of eight achieved in P-51B cockpits. In July, he received a new type, the P-51D. In all, England scored 19 kills during his wartime career, three of them in cooperation. The Mustang U’ve Had It remained with the 357th FG and was taken over by Eric Wooley. Its fate was fulfilled on October 4, 1944, when the tail section separated during a high-speed dive training flight and 2nd Lt. Richard Potter had to bail out with great difficulty.

P51B-15-NA, s/n 43-24823, Lt. William B. Overstreet, 363rd FS, 357th FG, 8th AF, Leiston, Great Britain, July 1944

P-51B Mustang s/n 43-24283 was originally assigned to Bud Anderson as the third and last P-51B he flew in combat. Like his previous P-51s, this one was also named Old Crow. When Anderson completed his tour with the 363rd FS in July 1944, the aircraft was assigned to Lt. William Overstreet. Overstreet had the name Berlin Express painted on the left side of the engine cowling and a drawing of a winged Mustang horse in a circle on the right side of the cowling. The identification letter was changed from S to O. Bill Overstreet became particularly famous for his story of chasing a German Bf 109 through the arches of the Eiffel Tower. The duel was supposed to have taken place sometime in the spring of 1944, but it is questionable whether the passage through the Eiffel Tower actually happened, nor is the exact date of the duel known, there is no mention in German records of such a strange event as a fighter plane crashing into the streets of Paris. Nevertheless, Overstreet was an aggressive and capable pilot and, for example, on September 3, 1944, he took part in a top-secret mission in which a remote-controlled four-engine bomber attacked a heavily defended German submarine base protected by cliffs. He subsequently flew other secret missions in support of the French Resistance, often landing behind enemy lines.

P-51B-7-NA, s/n 43-6964, 1st. Lt. James H. Clark, 382nd FS, 363rd FG, 9th AF, Maupertus, France, July 1944

The very colorful Mustang that was flown by James Clark had probably its wings replaced. The new ones came from another P-51 and did not carry camouflage paint. Where it was planned to apply invasion stripes prior to D-Day, a base camouflage paint in the shade Olive Drab / Neutral Grey was applied to the wing and the invasion stripes were subsequently painted. Lt. James Clark flew 70 missions during the war, including escorting gliders on the D-Day Normandy landings. He achieved a total of five kills. He married a girl named Marjorie, and it was her nickname, Midge, that he painted on the nose of his Mustang.

P-51B-1-NA, s/n 43-12434, Capt. Richard Turner, CO 356th FS, 354th FG, 9th AF, Lashenden, Great Britain, May 1944

The Mustang named Short-Fuse-Sallee was assigned to Dick Turner in December 1943. Turner scored eight aerial victories with it between January 5 and April 11, 1944, plus 1.5 aircraft destroyed on the ground. This made him one of the most successful pilots in the 356th FS. In March 1944, Turner’s Mustang was one of the first in the 356th FS to receive a new cockpit canopy called the Malcom Hood. In late May 1944, to the chagrin of Turner himself, Short-Fuse-Sallee was turned over to the 369th FS, which at the time was changing to P-51 Mustangs from the P-47 Thunderbolts. Here the aircraft was assigned to Charles Stanley and renamed Dunquerque. Stanley flew 74 missions (300 hours) with it, but unlike Richard Turner, failed to achieve any confirmed kills, although he was credited with damaging ten enemy aircraft during escort missions. Upon Stanley’s return to the US in August 1944, the Mustang was handed over to Thomas Burr, who flew it until he received a P-51D.