{"id":2878,"date":"2019-04-20T04:31:16","date_gmt":"2019-04-20T04:31:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nuclearcompanion.com\/?p=2878"},"modified":"2024-04-08T04:10:51","modified_gmt":"2024-04-08T04:10:51","slug":"9-top-facts-about-the-f-82-twin-mustang","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nuclearcompanion.com\/9-top-facts-about-the-f-82-twin-mustang\/","title":{"rendered":"9 Top Facts About The F-82 Twin Mustang"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The F-82 Twin Mustang is possibly one of the oddest American aircraft to go into full production.
Yes, it looked like two Mustangs crudely stuck together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But, don’t get fooled by its original appearance.
In fact: The twin Mustang holds marks and achievements of all types. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This post contains nine facts that you may not know about.
Let’s check them.<\/p>\n\n\n

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1- It was the most successful heavy fighter ever produced<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

During the Second World War, North American plane designers were looking for an aircraft able to operate as an escort for allied bombers. Moreover, the main thing they were looking forward to was one that could carry enough fuel. They required a heavy fighter able to hold on flights longer than ever before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The thing is that the distances of the war in Europe felt soft compared with those that the enormous proportions of the Pacific supposed. Some missions could require up to twelve hours of flight!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back then there wasn\u2019t a similar plane that could perform such a task. Both the P-51D Mustang, the base for the F-82, and the well-known Lockheed P-38J Lightning, suffered from poor autonomy: 850 & 585 miles, respectively.<\/p>\n\n\n

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A North American F-82 Twin Mustang. (U.S. Air Force photo<\/a>) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

That\u2019s where the F-82’s specifications shined. With the aid of external fuel stores, it could even put up 3,500 miles of range! The F-82 stood up as top-notch regarding performance, and it did it big time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Along with the mentioned P-38 Lightning, and the British de. Havilland DH.98 Mosquito, the F-82 was one of the few “heavy fighters” that succeeded. Truth been told, there weren\u2019t many actually reliable twin-engine aircraft. Excluding those three, heavy-fighter failures can be counted in big numbers.<\/p>\n\n\n

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De Havilland DH 98 Mosquito at the National Museum of the United States Air Force. (U.S. Air Force photo<\/a>) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Their main issue was that they couldn’t keep up with the agility of the single-engine aircraft.  This lack of maneuverability was a problem that had planes such as Germany’s Messerschmitt Bf 110.<\/p>\n\n\n

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The Messerschmitt Bf 110 was the Luftwaffe’s prime multi-role heavy fighter. (<\/em>SDASM Archives<\/a>)<\/em> <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

On the other hand, Britain’s Westland Whirlwind, although praised for its speed, had performance issues at high heights. This compromised its reliability and ended up serving as a bomber.  Even the Kawasaki Ki-45, a Japanese twin-engine, lacked for its design of good visibility and had vibration problems.<\/p>\n\n\n

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The Kawasaki Ki-45 Tory\u016b (Dragon Slayer) was the first long-range twin-engine fighter in Japan. It saw service from 1942-45. (<\/em>SDASM Archives<\/a>)<\/em> <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

None of these heavy fighters models stood a chance compared to the qualities of the F-82. Taking account of its performance and reliability, it outlasted all of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was the US Air Force’s, and the aviation industry’s in general,  ideal \u201cheavy fighter\u201d. The \u201csad part\u201d, though, is that it did so when the war was already over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Adding to that, the jets were just around the corner. Not many years later, the F-82 was out of aerial warfare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That been said, one could think that the F-82 couldn\u2019t display all it had to offer. Designed to fight in the Pacific, the last battlefield of the war, the nuclear bombs launched put an end to the possibility of its participation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2- It was the last USAF propeller-driven fighter<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As we just said, by the time the F-82 came out of the factory jet technology was the new thing. There were jet aircraft that even participated in World War II, like the German Messerschmitt Me 262 and the British Gloster Meteor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nonetheless, it took these new planes some time to beat the F-82. Although the F-82 was more vulnerable than the jets, the Mustang had longer range and endurance. Also, it could operate better out in shorter and rougher airstrips, such as those of South Korea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star, the first North American jet fighter, had its downsides. Not only lacked bombing racks, but also had a short range.<\/p>\n\n\n

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A Lockheed F<\/em>–94<\/em> Starfire during a flight. In mid- 1950 Air Defense units began trading F-82s for F-94s. (U.S. Air Force photo<\/a>)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Yet, despite its liability, the jet engine was inevitably the future. Having solved the fuel consumption problems of the early turbojets, the F-82, and the age it represented was destinated to retire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Its useful life was not long, and by the begging of the fifties, the Air Force had already replaced the F-82 with both the F-89 and F-94 models. At that time, the F-82 got relegated to a second-line aircraft.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, Mustang’s time in the American army, as well as that of the piston-powered fighter, came to an end in 1953. It was then that the last of them retired from service in Alaska, at the 449th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron unit.
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The F-82H holds the distinction of being the last propeller-driven fighter used in the front line by the USAF. This was a night-fighter version conditioned for a radar operator instead of a copilot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The F-82 became the last propeller-driven fighter acquired in quantity by the USAF. It can also be counted as the last tail-dragger (two wheels forward and one in the back), with the exception of the A-1 Skyraider, an attack aircraft.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3 – It was the ultimate piston-powered fighter<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As a matter of fact, the F-82 was not only the last piston-powered fighter but also the most capable one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Confronted with the Lockheed P-38, the F-82 day version was a hundred miles faster. Compared with its predecessor, the Northrop P-61, it proved to be a hundred and fifty miles faster. Moreover, the F-82 had such autonomy that it could remain for more time and cover more distance than these other two aircraft combined.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Judging it from today’s standards (with aircraft such as the F-15 and F-22) it may seem exaggerated to give this plane so much credit. But back in the day, the F-82 happened to be on top of the world for fighters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even when the jet era was present, the F-82 was still able to hold its own capabilities. It was more than capable of outrunning F-80’s and F-84’s early models.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4 – Although it seemed two Mustang fuselages joined together, it was a new design<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

All being said, what makes the P-82 Twin Mustang so distinctive is its looks. Sometimes elegant, simply odd most of the time. One way or the other, one cannot look at it without wondering about how something that looks like two planes merged together can fly properly.
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On the other hand, results are easy to compare with other similar-looking models which as well as the F-82 are twin-fuselage aircraft.
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Nonetheless, we shall acknowledge that the term \u201ctwin fuselage\u201d can be somewhat misleading. It is not as if the Air Force got a few engineers to wrap up two F-51 Mustangs and ta-da, a new aircraft was born.
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It is true that both the F-51 and F-82 have many parts in common, which by itself granted an advantage in spare parts management. However, they are definitely two different planes.
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North American XP-51F 3\/4 front view (S\/N 43-43332). (U.S. Air Force photo<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The designers made the F-82 from scratch. Yes, they based on the fuselage of the P-51. To be precise, on the one of the XP-51F, an ultra-lightweight prototype and also a predecessor of the P-51H. But they made so many modifications from a mechanic point of view they cannot be seen as identical designs.
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Given this inspiration from the XP-51F, designers didn\u2019t make major changes from the radiator section forward. But on the other hand, the after-fuselage radiator shutters gained 5.4 inches of extension.
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North American P-51H “Mustang” in flight. (U.S. Air Force photo<\/a>)<\/em> <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Another similarity is that the outer wing panels were, on the XP-82\u2019s prototype, identical to those found on the P-51H. The designers choose these panels since they were of heavier construction than those of the XP-51G.
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North American XF-82. (U.S. Air Force phot<\/a>o)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

For the engine nacelles, designers of the F-82 used those from the XP-51F, G, and H. Also, the F-82’s canopies, shorter than those found on F, G, and J F-51 Mustangs\u2019, are identical to those on the P-51H. Both planes’ release dates were pretty close to each other. Only four and a half months later than the P-51H, the XP-82 came out.
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5 – It set a record that still stands<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It may result hard to believe, but this plane holds a record up to this day. Well, actually more than one.
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the one hand, it remains as the holder of the longest flight ever made by a fighter plane. How much? 4,978 miles.
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The one who made it possible was Lieutenant-Colonel Robert E. Thacker. Accompanying him as copilot was Lieutenant John M. Ard. The plane they used was the F-82B \u201dBetty Jo\u201d, a jazzy name that came from the pilot’s wife.
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They both departed on Feb. 28, 1947, from Honolulu, Hawaii, to New York. It became the first non-stop flight by any kind of plane from one of those cities to the other. A flight of fourteen hours and thirty-three minutes!
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It also owned the record for the heaviest take-off load ever lifted into the air by a fighter plane. Since a flight like that required it to be full of fuel, so they loaded it with seven tons of it!
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Nonetheless, it is important to know that the trip wasn\u2019t something made only to show off and brag about a record. It had also a propagandistic objective.
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The year 1947 was at the beginning of the Cold War. With an exhibition of flight range like this achieved by the F-82, the US sent a message to the world (and mainly to the Russians).
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Betty Jo at the National Museum of the United States Air Force. (U.S. Air Force photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

There wasn’t a target far enough that they could not attack effectively. The F-82 showed to be able to escort bombers all the way to any location in the globe.
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Getting back to those who made the record, a few days later after completing their flight, both get their medal. The Distinguished Flying Cross, to be precise, by the hands of Carl Spaatz, commanding general of the Air Force.
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This distinction is mainly given to those of the Air Force who proved heroism during duty or made extraordinary achievements. Originally, though, it was destinated for those who established flying records such as distance and altitude.
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PS: The record F-82, Betty Jo, is currently on display at The National Museum of the United States Air Force, in Dayton, Ohio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further reading<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n