How the P-51 Mustang Turned Its Radiator Into a Speed Advantage

On the morning of November 20, 1940, North American Aviation’s only fighter prototype climbed out of Mines Field for a high-speed run over Los Angeles. Twelve minutes later the Allison engine quit, the airplane flipped in a plowed field, and a fat coolant scoop still hung intact beneath the wreckage. Five months earlier a British purchasing commission had entered the Inglewood plant and asked Dutch Kindelberger to build Curtiss P-40 fighters under license. Kindelberger and designer Edgar Schmued refused to copy an airplane already behind the times. They wagered a new fighter around the Allison V-1710 in 120 days. Raymond Rice, Edward Horkey, and Irving Ashkenas shaped the NA-73 in Caltech’s wind tunnel. The airframe rolled out on September 9, 1940. Vance Breese flew it on October 26. After Paul Balfour’s crash, Robert Chilton returned the rebuilt machine to the air on April 3, 1941. As the Mustang Mark I, it was quicker down low than a P-40, then faded above 15,000 feet. The Royal Air Force sent it to reconnaissance and ground attack. Its first combat sortie came on May 10, 1942. At Dieppe, Hollis Hills scored the type’s first confirmed aerial victory. Documentaries praise the NACA 45-100 laminar-flow wing. The long belly duct followed F. W. Meredith’s 1935 paper. In April 1942, Ronald Harker flew Mustang AG422 at Duxford and argued for the two-stage Merlin. The Mustang X and XP-51B proved what the airframe could do. Packard built the V-1650 for the P-51B and P-51C. Drop tanks carried a single-engine escort toward Berlin. After Black Thursday over Schweinfurt, Jimmy Doolittle released Eighth Air Force fighters to hunt. The P-51D followed with a teardrop canopy and six guns. 00:00 - Crash of the only prototype over Los Angeles 00:49 - The British commission at Inglewood 06:20 - NA-73 rolls out in 102 days 07:41 - Vance Breese and the first flight 08:37 - Paul Balfour’s wreck in the plowed field 12:01 - First combat and the Dieppe victory 13:14 - The laminar-flow wing 16:57 - The belly scoop and Meredith’s idea 24:22 - Ronnie Harker and the Merlin 32:35 - P-51B production and drop tanks Welcome to Warfront Stories. Every war has a story. Every hero leaves a legacy. At Warfront Stories, we bring World War II to life through immersive storytelling inspired by real historical events. From forgotten heroes and secret missions to legendary battles and extraordinary acts of courage, each episode reveals the human side of history. If you enjoy authentic WWII stories, military history, and unforgettable wartime moments, subscribe and join us for new stories every week. #WW2 #WorldWar2 #MilitaryHistory #WarStories #WarfrontStories #WWII #WW2History #AmericanHistory #MilitaryHistory #Aircraft #Biography #Veteran #Germany #USArmy #USAirForce #P51Mustang #NorthAmericanAviation #EdgarSchmued #MerlinEngine #AllisonEngine #EighthAirForce #JimmyDoolittle #DieppeRaid #Schweinfurt #RAF