On 2 Jun 2018 06:42:15 -0700, Miloch <Miloch_member@newsguy.com>
wrote:
>http://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/21198/listen-to-a-p-82-twin-mustang-pur-a-glorious-sound-not-heard-in-over-30-years
>
>The P-82 Twin Mustang, sometimes lovingly referred to as 'Double Trouble' and
>later redesignated the F-82, was something of an odd concept, taking two P-51
>Mustang fuselages and slapping them together to create a long-range escort
>fighter. But that doesn't mean it wasn't beautiful and effective.
>
>Only 272 of the aircraft were built and the last time one had flown, or even run
>its engines for that matter, was in 1987. Now all that is about to change. But
>before a first flight milestone is reached, thanks to master warbird restorer
>Tom Reilly, we get to see and hear one of these marvelous machines awake and
>humming once again, with its twin Merlin engines churning away side-by-side.
>
>XP-82 44-83887 was a prototype for what would become known as the P/F-82. You
>can read about how Tom came upon the project and went about restoring what was
>seemingly unrestorable here. But suffice it to say, over the last decade the
>warbird nut has made his very expensive dream nearly come true, with the
>imminent goal of flying the reforged XP-82 Twin Mustang to Oshkosh this Summer.
>Regardless of if this happens or not, a once seemingly mythical future where a
>Twin Mustang could still be seen skirting the heavens is about to become a
>reality.
>
>The P-82 was in the works in the latter half of World War II. It was intended to
>well beyond the reach of P-38 Lightnings, but the type didn't become operational
>until 1946. Still, the Twin Mustang went on to have a successful career,
>protecting the homeland for Air Defense Command and being among the first
>American aircraft to wade into the Korean conflict.
>
>The Twin Mustang even holds the mantle of the type to shoot down the first three
>North Korean aircraft of the war. It also proved to be a highly effective ground
>attack platform, wreaking havoc on North Korean positions with its guns,
>rockets, and bombs.
>
>Not long into its seven-year operational run, some of the F-82s gained a
>center-wing mounted radar and the electronics to go with it, making it the
>USAF's top night interceptor and replacing the World War II vintage P-61 Black
>Widow. But even with the P-82's great versatility and proven pedigree, the
>arrival of the jet age would usher in its demise.
>
>Although it borrows on the Mustang design directly, the P-82 shares few
>interchangeable parts with its single-engine progenitor. Additionally, one of
>its Packard-built Rolls-Royce V-1650 Merlin engines turns to the left, making
>the aircraft even harder to restore and find parts for. But thanks to the hard
>work and dedication of Tom Reilly and his team, the Twin Mustang is about to
>rise again.
>
>----------
>
>Initially intended as a very long-range (VLR) escort fighter, the F-82 was
>designed to escort Boeing B-29 Superfortress bombers on missions exceeding 2,000
>miles (3,200 km) from the Solomon Islands or Philippines to Tokyo, missions
>beyond the range of the Lockheed P-38 Lightning and conventional P-51 Mustangs.
>Such missions were part of the planned U.S. invasion of the Japanese home
>islands, which was forestalled by the surrender of Japan after the atomic
>bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the opening of Soviet attacks on
>Japanese-held territory in Manchuria.
>
>In October 1943, the North American Aircraft design team began work on a fighter
>design that could travel over 2,000 mi (3,200 km) without refueling. It
>consisted of a twin-fuselage design, somewhat similar to the experimental German
>Messerschmitt Bf 109Z "Zwilling". Although based on the lightweight experimental
>XP-51F, which would later become the P-51H Mustang, it was actually a new
>design. North American Design Chief Edgar Schmued incorporated two P-51H Mustang
>fuselages lengthened by the addition of a 57 in (145 cm) fuselage plug located
>behind the cockpit where additional fuel tanks and equipment could be installed.
>These were mounted to a newly designed center wing section containing the same
>six .50 caliber M3 Browning machine guns as a single-engine Mustang, but with
>more concentrated fire. The first XP-82 prototype (s/n 44-83886) was equipped
>with a removable centerline gun pod housing eight additional .50 caliber M3
>Brownings, but this did not feature on production aircraft. An even more
>powerful centerline gun pod containing a 40 mm cannon was considered, but was
>never built.[2] The outer wings were reinforced to allow the addition of hard
>points for carrying additional fuel or 1,000 pounds (450 kg) of ordnance. The
>two vertical tails were also from the XP-51F, but incorporated large dorsal
>fillets for added stability in case of an engine failure. The aircraft had a
>conventional landing gear with both wheels retracting into bays under each
>fuselage center section.
>
>
>
Interesting article and videos, it is a little dizzying watching the
two props spinning up, but the sound is magical!
--
The problem is Donald Trump. The solution is impeachment or, the otherwise legal
removal, from office, of the greatest threat to peace the world has ever known.
|
|