LSFM's North American TF-51D Mustang "Galveston Gal"

The Lone Star Flight Museum (LSFM) is the owner and operator of this beautifully restored North American TF-51D Mustang "Galveston Gal" (S/N 44-73458), which is available for airshows, flybys, film and warbird rides at airshows within Texas.

The P-51 Mustang is almost universally regarded as the best fighter to emerge from World War II. Talk to Bob Hoover, Chuck Yeager, Bud Anderson or any of a hundred other military test pilots, and they’ll tell you the airplane was nothing less than a stroke of genius when it was introduced in 1942. Today, Mustangs are the most common type of warbird operating on the civil scene in the USA and may be viewed at virtually every airshow in the country.

The TF-51 and P-51D may look similar, but, in fact, the TF version incorporates a number of upgrades and improvements to adapt the original, single-seat Mustang to two seats and dual controls. One of the primary mods involves removing the standard 85-gallon auxiliary tank aft of the pilot’s seat and installing a second seat, seat belts and shoulder harnesses in the rear position. This left the airplane with 180 gallons in the wings, plenty for flights of two hours or less.

While the missing fuselage tank allows provisions for carrying a passenger, aft occupants had best be short, especially if they’re wearing a helmet. The standard, sharply tapered canopy presents a problem with headroom in the rear. Tall passengers have to scrunch down in the seat or bend forward slightly to fit into the rear pit. Owners of stock P-51s are sometimes reluctant to replace the canopy with a more squared-off, oblong version for fear of ruining the
airplane’s lines. Another factor that sometimes influences the decision to stay with the stock canopy is cost. The TF-51 canopy costs about $50,000.

The minimum aft control installation demands stick, rudder pedals, throttle, prop and mixture, not to mention a full set of flight instruments and enough engine instruments to monitor manifold pressure, rpm, oil pressure, oil temperature and cylinder head temperature. Plumb all of that to the engine and appropriate controls, and you essentially have a total rebuild of the main fuselage.

The Lone Star Flight Museum's North American TF-51D Mustang is painted in the markings of Capt. Raymond B. Lancaster of the 370th  Fighter Squadron, 359th Fighter Group which carries his good luck name "Galveston Gal".

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