Sorry for the poor video quality. They use old cameras molded into the structure of the airplane. There was no way for me to attach a Gopro in the cockpit so that's all I got. No camera could really picture the joy of flying such an airplane though, it's in a league of its own.
What an amazing opportunity. I work at the Orlando airport, teach at FlightSafety, and I hear many of our pilots say they park their aircraft at Kissimmee and a few have actually flown w Lee. I hope I too can go for a ride w him some day!
Too fun! Thankfully our Hero Pilots had these machines! :-) What a rush! EDIT: The precision that this fighter plane flies is amazing! And a piston engine plane to boot, no jet engine. It looks so smooth and graceful, if that makes any sense? :-)
Dad was a pilot for a long time....22,000 hours most as PIC. His last Aircraft was a fan Jet Falcon, unfortunately he died in a crash in this aircraft in 1968 age 48. He always wanted to fly a P-51 since he was a 2nd LT in the Army aircorps flying a c-54 from the Sudan to Paris. Hence My interest in this aircraft. I have had models of it and watched many video's but at 73 have never flown in one. Maybe someday!
My Dad flew a Mk111 for the RAF in 1944-45. He stated quite adamantly it was the best fighter overall at that time. He got to get hours on it in Scotland. At altitude it really came into its own he said. He loved watching other Mustangs at that height. For survival they pushed their planes to the limits, so much he couldn’t say what the ASI said when he was in a real hurry as the plane was shaking so much couldn’t read the instruments, due I have read to compressibility but well into the 400’s in mph.
You cannot earn any other pilot certificates until you have first gotten the private pilot license. (PPL light aircraft) It is a pre-requisite for commercial pilot training.
No you don't. Light aircraft are flown with a Class Rating involving all aircraft that fall into that Class. E.g. A PPL(A) License with a Single Engine Piston Class Rating entitles you to fly a P-51, you don't need a type rating. You can also fly Cessna 172s, Piper 28s, Beech Bonanzas with the same Class Rating. Authorities and manufacturers simply assign a type of aircraft to need a type rating to be flown because of their complexity, weight or performance. An ATPL License entitles you to fly a Boeing 737 but you have to have a type rating because B737s are special in this sense. However when you sit in a P-51 with an ATPL License you are flying a Single Engine Piston aircraft and those aircraft don't have type ratings. In some cases you may need an initial flight training for aircraft types even though they can be flown with Class Ratings before flying the type as a Commander. I wonder if you need initial training for P-51s... Maybe?
Insurance is usually the limiting factor for most high performance or historic aircraft. There is what is legal... and then there is what the insurance company wants. ... as long as you have tail wheel, high performance, complex endorsements, and your private pilot certificate... you are FAA legal to fly a P-51
