North American P-51D Mustang ‘Detroit Miss’ – kit from LEGO® bricks

Description

The P-51D Mustang was the star model, and with approximately 8,000 copies, manufacturer North American Aviation’s most-built version of the P-51 fighter plane. Its competitive edge in 1944 was an innovative Plexiglas canopy, which considerably improved all-round visibility, as well as two additional heavy machine guns.

The P-51D, like other recent versions, was also superior to the original 1940 version in terms of engine performance. It was improved here and there – finally, the single-engined single-seater, not least because of its impressive range of 1,377 kilometres at the time, became one of the best fighters of World War II.

With the end of the Second World War, the era of the Mustang was by no means over. The Swiss Air Force purchased some but wrestled with the second-hand machines’ signs of wear and tear. The Israelis used Mustangs they had bought from Sweden and Italy during the Suez Crisis in 1956. In Latin American countries, P-51 planes could be found in use up until the 1980s. Today, the remaining planes stand in museums or private hangars.

The versions chosen by Peter Blackert bear famous squadron markings: the aeroplane with the red tail represents the Tuskegee Airmen; the one with the yellow nose stands for the P-51D Detroit Miss of the 375th Fighter Squadron.

Colour of the model: grey with yellow

Number of original LEGO® bricks: 45

Measurements of the model: 7.6 x 8.8 x 3 cm

Scale of the model: 1:125

Difficulty level: beginner