My father used to work for a company Cavalier. They were in the business of refitting modifying and selling P-51’s as export fighters and as private aircraft back in the late 1960’s and early 70’s.

Here is one configuration of the Mustang I’ll bet you’ve not seen. This one is powered by the “other Rolls Royce engine†the Dart. I was told that the aircraft would cruise at VNE in level flight but that it had lateral stability issues. The plans were later sold to Piper aircraft who refitted it with a PT-6 and called in the enforcer but it’s long been scraped.



Here is a long range Cavalier conversion with tip tanks an extended vertical stab and an aft cockpit installed. Apparently one of these was sold to the dictator of (I don’t fully remember which country) but it was either El-Salvador or Nicaragua. When the rebels were at his door step he filled the aft cockpit with cash topped up the tanks and landed safe and sound several hours later in Miami. Or so the story goes.

The length of the nose on that thing! Surely the pilot had to land 'sideways' to see any runway at all, eh?

It definitely had a beak on it!

I remember them well. They were manufactured at some little airport in Central Florida, I think. It's been a very long time ago, but I recall flying into that airport and seeing all those airframes sitting around. You could pick one up pretty cheap in those days, but a hell of a lot more than I could afford.

Sarasota Florida I believe.

That is where my dad worked for them.

I had a 1971 pocket sized aircraft ID book that had the Cavalier Mustang in it, wanted one back then too!

quote:

Originally posted by TrapperP:
The length of the nose on that thing! Surely the pilot had to land 'sideways' to see any runway at all, eh?

Sure but, at least those and normal Mustangs had a relitively narrow nose, compared to some.

I have an old magazine around here that had an article on Aussie Mustangs....

it was about some place in Western Australia that they were taken and just left parked on an isolated runway, just rotting in the sun and heat...

makes on cry of all the ones that were just scrapped and let to rot like that...

Cool pics, thanks for sharing them.

Just once, I want to strap one of those on and take it for a spin ... just once. Doesn't even have to be a Mustang, I won't be picky! Any old WW II fighter will suffice.

I have always been fond of the Corsair, watching Baa Baa Blacksheep and reading Pappy Boyingtons biography might have had some effect on me.

Yeah, and the P-47 and the F9F. Always have preferred radials to vees and in-lines.

My two dream fighters are the F8F Bearcat and the F7F Tigercat.

But if you wanted to give me a Merlin powered fighter and and unlimited plutonium VISA card I probably wouldn't turn it down.