 Flying a P-51C Mustang
One of the greatest fighter planes in World War 2 — Page 3
|
| Time to Fly
While waiting for the P-51C to return, we looked at the other aircraft on display – a B-24 and a B-17 – both were taking people for rides. The bombers were also available to take a walk-through. We had taken the tour of the bombers when they were here 5 years before. As a result, I didn’t want to wait in line to go inside the planes again. With my ride in the P-51C coming next, when it returned to the airfield, I didn’t want to be inside a bomber at that time.
While waiting for the P-51C to return, we met David who is a WW2 veteran who flew in B-17s during the war. He was wearing his WW2 flight jacket with a patch on the left shoulder for the “5th Air Force.” It has the distinction of being the oldest numbered (78+ years) Air Force unit that is still operating today. David was very gracious as he fielded questions from the people around him. Barb had a lengthy conversation with the vet. David seemed to enjoy receiving questions from the people and was eager to share stories about his experiences with the big war planes. Finally, the P-51C returned from a flight that seemed to last a lot longer than it really did. Now it was my turn to get into the trainee’s seat to take a ride in this very special aircraft. I was directed to climb up on the left wing where I waited for the VGCM (Volunteer Ground-Crew Member) to prepare the trainee seat for me. The space in the cockpit looked very small to me bringing back my concern as to whether or not I could fit.
Then it was time for me to move into the cockpit. I had nothing to fear, there was a lot more room in the cockpit than I had imagined. Plenty of head room and room around my shoulders. The one place lacking, was legroom. It was clear that my legs were too long for me to be a P-51C pilot for real. However, I thought to myself that I would be okay for the duration of the flight. As I sat in the seat, the VGCM pulled straps around me that I thought were part of the 4-point seat belt system. After securing the seat belts, he brought forward another set of 4-point seat belts. I then asked, “Why are there two sets of seat belts?” I was told that the first set of belts were not seat belts, but my parachute straps. “My what?!!!” I exclaimed. Fred (the pilot) leaned in and explained that I probably won’t need my parachute. However, he said that just in case we need to use our ‘chutes, he will pop the canopy and roll the plane over on its side. Then I was told I would release my seat belts and roll out of the plane. Then my attention was directed to the “D” ring that I would need to pull to open my parachute. How is that for a very short lesson in how to use a parachute? The last thing in my preparation was for the pilot to hand me a barf bag.
My concerns melted away very quickly when I heard the engine cranking over. It took a couple of tries for the engine to finally begin running and producing the sound of a smooth-running machine. As we began rolling, I studied the instruments in front of me. Being an aviation fan, I was familiar with all the gauges. While moving along the taxi route, Fred was fine-tuning the engine for take-off. I was getting excited and we hadn’t even taken off yet. |
Page 3
Disclaimer
|