The Red Tail Project

Manufactured:
North American Aviation, Dallas TX.

Delivered:
US Army Air Corps on April 7, 1944.

1st Assignment:
341st AAF Base Unit Pinellas, Florida.
Flown as trainer.

Transferred:
December 1944, 378th AAF Base Unit,
Venice, Florida. Flown as trainer.

Transferred:
June 1945, 339th AAF Base Unit
Thomasville, Georgia. Flown as trainer.

Declared Surplus:
October 1945. With cessation of hostilities
P51-C 42-64129 was dropped from inventory.

Last Flight:
September 1945. Flown to Montana State
College, Bozeman Montana. Utilized for
Vocational training.

Donated:
1970. Donated to Confederate Air, Harlingen TX. Registered as N215CA, the airframe traveled to Minneapolis MN, back to Harlingen, TX, and then to the Great Planes Wing of CAF in Council Bluffs, Iowa, 1983.

Final Home:
1988. Transferred to Southern Minnesota Wing of CAF. So. St. Paul, Minnesota.

Restoration:
1996. Completed May 2001.
Wings restoration: Robert Odegaard, Odegaard Aviation, Kindred, ND.

Wings restoration:
Robert Odegaard, Odegaard Aviation, Kindred, ND. Engine Restoration: Mike Nixon, Vintage V-12s Tehachapi, CA

Very Brief History of the P-51 Mustang
The P-51 Mustang was developed by North American Aviation as a contract for the British Royal Air Force. The original model, the P-51A, was an effective ground support aircraft, but it wasn't until it was fitted with the Merlin engine, first appearing on the B and C models, that the aircraft became an effective interceptor.

The Mustang first flew in October 1940 and went into service in July 1942 with the RAF and later in 1942 with the U.S. Army Air Force. The Mustang served with distinction well into the 1960's with the Dominican Republic flying them in active service until 1984!

P-51C Mustang N61429
This aircraft, donated to the CAF in 1988, was assigned to the Minnesota Wing for restoration. After several years and over a half million-dollar investment, the aircraft, "Tuskegee Airmen" flew for the first time in 2001 to honor and tell the story of the Tuskegee Airmen.

"Tuskegee Airmen" unfortunately suffered an unavoidable engine failure in May 2004, and crashed near Red Wing, Minnesota. The pilot, Don Hinz, was credited with avoiding injuries on the ground and avoiding a post-crash fire. Don survived the accident only to succumb to his injuries the next day.

The Minnesota Wing has pledged that the "Red Tail Project," which received national attention for its' two year educational mission, will continue. A campaign is currently under way to raise the funds necessary to restore "Tuskegee Airmen" and return it to the air to continue its' mission.

Name & Color of the Plane

The “Tuskegee Airmen” airplane represents all the personnel that served in the Tuskegee Experiment: Pilots, Bombardiers, and all Ground Support personnel.

The name “By Request” was the name of Col. B.O. Davis’ plane. He named his plane this because white pilots would request the Tuskegee Airmen to escort them due to their excellence.

The colors represent the four fighter squadrons in the 332nd Group.
The red and yellow cowling represents the 302nd Fighter Squadron.
The A on the side represents the 99th Fighter Squadron.
The yellow banding on the wings represents the 300th Fighter Squadron.
The red fins on the wings represents the 100th Fighter Squadron.

Generally considered the best fighter of WWII
"The day I saw Mustangs over Berlin, I knew the jig was up."
Hermann Goering

P51C Mustang Specifications

TYPE
Single seat, long-range escort fighter. (This aircraft modified with a rear seat)

DIMENSIONS:
Length 32 feet 3 inches; span 37 feet; height 12 feet 2 inches

ENGINE:
One Rolls-Royce (Packard) Merlin liquid-Cooled V-1650-7 engine developing 1,490 HP

WEIGHT:
Empty 7,635 pounds, maximum loaded 12,100 Pounds.

ARMAMENT:
Four Colt-Browning M2 .50-inch machine guns with a total capacity of 1,000 rounds; external mounts up to 1,000 pounds of bombs or six High Velocity Aerial Rockets.

PERFORMANCE:
Maximum Speed: 505 miles per hour, Cruising speed: 362 miles per hour, Service Ceiling: 41,600 feet; Range: 1,000 miles