Matchbox National Aviation Hall of Fame WWII P-51D Mustang Diecast Fighter Plane

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Matchbox Collectibles Die-cast WWII Fighter plane replica, new in box : National Aviation Hall of Fame Collection - General John C. Meyer North American Aviation P-51D Mustang Material: Die-cast. Scale: 1:72. Mfg. Date: 2001 .Ages 14+.Extras: Stand, labeled with the type of plane. Mfg.: Mattel.Factory sealed box has normal shelf ware .Free domestic shipping.National Aviation Hall of Fame Collection - General John C. MeyerJohn C. Meyer started his flying career when he graduated from flying school in 1940. Three years later, Meyer was the Commannficer of the 487th Fighter Squadron, 352nd Fighter Group, known as "The Blue-nosed Bastards of Bodney", based in Bodney, England. Flying a P-47 Thunderbolt, serial number 42-8529 (HO-M), which he called "Lambie", Major Meyer had the first air-to-air victory by a 352nd pilot, downing a Messerschmitt Bf-109 on November 26, 1943.The 487th Fighter Squadron transitioned to the P-51B in April 1944, and now Lt. Col. Meyer flew s/n 42-106471 (HO-M), known as "Lambie II". On May 8, 1944, he led a flight of eight P-51s against a large formation of enemy fighters. He destroyed three Bf-109s, and was awarded his first Distinguished Service Cross, second only to the Congressional Medal of Honor.On November 21, 1944, while flying Petie 3rd, a P-51D Mustang, s/n 44-15041 (HO-M), he shot down three more Focke-Wulf Fw-190s, and was awarded his second Distinguished Service Cross. This is the day depicted in the painting "Full House, Aces High". Meyer was awarded his third Distinguished Service Cross for a mission on January 1, 1945, during the Battle of the Bulge. A group of approximately 50 German Luftwaffe Bf-109s and Fw-190s attacked the Y-29 airfield in Belgium, where the 487th had been recently deployed. Leading a group of twelve P-51s, and taking off with full wing tanks, Meyer shot down one Fw-190 just after retracting his landing gear. He destroyed another Fw-190, and the 487th destroyed 23 enemy fighters that day, losing only one to friendly fire. On January 9, 1945, Meyer was injured in an automobile accident that ended his WWII career.In the Korean War, Colonel Meyer was the Commanding Officer of the 4th Fighter Interceptor Wing, and downed two MiG-15s while flying the F-86 Sabre, making him the seventh ranked all time Air Force ace with 26 air and 13 ground victories. He became a Four Star General and was Commander in Chief, Strategic Air Command. Besides the three Distinguished Service Cross, he was awarded the Silver Star with oak leaf cluster, the Distinguished Flying Cross with five oak leaf clusters, the Air Medal with 15 oak leaf clusters, the Purple Heart, the French Croix de Guerre, and the Belgian Croix de Guerre .The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II, the Korean War and other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in 1940 by North American Aviation (NAA) in response to a requirement of the British Purchasing Commission for license-built Curtiss P-40 fighters. The prototype NA-73X airframe was rolled out on 9 September 1940, 102 days after the contract was signed and first flew on 26 October.The Mustang was originally designed to use the Allison V-1710 engine of the P-40, which had limited high-altitude performance. It was first flown operationally by the Royal Air Force (RAF) as a tactical-reconnaissance aircraft and fighter-bomber (Mustang Mk I). The addition of the Rolls-Royce Merlin to the P-51B/C model transformed the Mustang's performance at altitudes above 15,000 ft, matching or bettering that of the Luftwaffe's fighters. The definitive version, the P-51D, was powered by the Packard V-1650-7, a license-built version of the Rolls-Royce Merlin 60 series two-stage two-speed supercharged engine, and armed with six .50 caliber (12.7 mm) M2 Browning machine guns.From late 1943, P-51Bs (supplemented by P-51Ds from mid-1944) were used by the USAAF's Eighth Air Force to escort bombers in raids over Germany, while the RAF's 2 TAF and th... read more

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