P-51B Mustang Two-thirds Scale Replica (MJ-7-G)
(Not available for viewing)
The North American P-51 Mustang - along with the British Spitfire - capture the imagination of many World War 2 enthusiasts. However, the purchase and operating cost put them out of reach of most people.
Marcel Jurca, the designer of this homebuilt, lived outside of Paris, and was an ex-Luftwaffe pilot. He flew Henchel bombers in the beginning of the war. Before the end of the war however, Marcel defected to France, and became a citizen. In the 1950’s Marcel began designing small and sleek sport aircraft, the first among these being the Autan, Sirocco, and the Tempete. He then began designing replica WWII fighters. The P-51 Mustang was the first of these designs. He later went on to design several other replica fighter planes such as the FW-190, ME-109 and the P-40 Warhawk.
The Mustang replica is of all-wood construction and uses many components from the aircraft industry. It has a retractable undercarriage and conventional flight control surfaces and flaps. The fuselage, wings and empennage are of sitka spruce framework with a plywood covering and an exterior finish of thin fiberglass. It is powered by a six-cylinder Lycoming aircraft engine.
Although capable of carrying two persons, the Museum’s aircraft has the second seat removed and an additional fuel tank installed. The design represents the earlier P-51B with the high rear fuselage, rather than the more common P-51D with a bubble canopy.
This aircraft was built by Mr. I. J. Baptiste and first flew in New Brunswick in 1981. It was flown for about 25 years by Abbotsford resident, Mr. Joe Daems, who donated the aircraft to the Museum in 2008. It is currently undergoing restoration at the Museum.
Technical Details:
Manufactured: 1981
Engine: Lycoming O-540, 260 hp six-cylinder horizontally opposed
Maximum speed: 200 mph (322 km/h)
Loaded weight: 1900 lb (862 kg)
Span: 24 ft 9 in (7.5 m)
Length: 23 ft 3 in (7.1 m)
Height: 6 ft 3 in (1.9 m)
Wing area: 114 sq ft (10.6 sq m)
(Photo credits: C. Hutchins)