The Mustang P-51 was a single-seat fighter used during World War II. Designed and built in record time by North Americans to British specifications, and for British use, it was fast and highly manoeuvrable at low altitude, well suited for tactical reconnaissance and ground attack. Rolls-Roycer Merlin engines, US-built by Packard, were fitted from 1942 onwards, providing better power for the high altitude combat fighter role. The P-51D variant was an unqualified success, and taken up in great number by the RAF and the USAAF. This book is a detailed account of the design, production, development and operation of the Mustang, from the first day's design work through to the Mustangs still flying. The Mustang was most famously employed as a long-range escort to the heavy bombers of the 8th Air Force, but its many roles stretched across all theatres of war, as recorded in this book. Appendices include details of production, specification, deliveries, orders of battle, Mustang units, aces, trial reports and an index of surviving aircraft.