“The Mustang was a good fighter and the best escort due to its incredible range, make no mistake about it. It was also the best American dogfighter. But the laminar flow wing fitted to the Mustang could be a little tricky. It could not by any means out-turn a Spitfire. No way. It had a good rate-of-roll, better than the Spitfire, so I would say the pluses to the Spitfire and the Mustang just about equate. If I were in a dogfight, I’d prefer to be flying the Spitfire. The problem was I wouldn’t like to be in a dogfight near Berlin, because I could never get home to Britain in a Spitfire!”
– RAF Chief Naval Test Pilot and C.O. Captured Enemy Aircraft Flight Capt. Eric Brown, CBE, DSC, AFC, RN, after testing the Mustang at RAE Farnborough in March 1944
In the face of mounting competition and constant calls for keeping up on their game, Corgi has begun to offer several re-tooled 1:72 scale North American P-51 Mustangs that are aimed at recapturing the imagination of their collector base. Their latest venture, an RAF North American Mustang Mk. IV Fighter was piloted by Werner Christie of No. 150 Wing during the Spring of 1945 (AA27703).
The final victory for a WWII RAF Mustang belonged to Norwegian ace, Werner Christie, who was flying his personal machine KH790. Following the conclusion of a successful bomber escort mission over Germany, Christie led his Mustangs in search of Luftwaffe fighters. Flying above Finow airfield, he noticed a flight of Fw 190s and immediately dived to attack. His first burst of fire caught the wing of an unsuspecting Focke Wulf, blowing half of the wing off and sending the fighter spiralling into the ground. This would be Christie’s eleventh and final victory of the war.
As part of their retooling program, Corgi’s latest squadron of Mustangs (AA27701-AA27703) now feature interchangeable wing flaps that allow the collector to choose between up and down positions.