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Mustang Aviation Art


America-Art-Prints Mustang

[UP] - War of 1812 - War of Independence - Battle of Lexington - Battle of Bunkerhill - USS Constitution - Native American History - The Alamo - American Civil War - General Grant - General Lee - Battle of Gettysburg - Battle of New Orleans - Battle of Antietam - Civil War Regiments - Gilbert Gaul - Chris Collingwood - Clyde Heron - Buffalo Bill - General Custer - Pirate Prints - US Navy - Aircraft Carriers - Battleships - Aviation Art - Flying Fortress - Mustang - Stealth - Robert Taylor - Nicolas Trudgian - Maritime Art - World War Two - Korean War - Vietnam War - Gulf War - Postcards - Military Paperweights

P51 North American Mustang of the US Air Force shown in aviation art prints by aviation artists Anthony Saunders, David Pentland and Geoff Lea. The P51 North American Mustang long range fighter shown escorting heavy bombers over Europe. 

The ubiquitous North American P-51 Mustang, which many consider to be the best all-around fighter of WW II, owes its origins to the British Air Ministry. Following Britains entry into WW II in 1939, the RAF was interested in purchasing additional fighter aircraft from American sources, particularly the Curtiss P-40. Curtiss, which was busy, was unable to guarantee timely delivery so the British approached North American Aviation as a possible second source for the P-40. North American chose to propose its own fighter design which would use the same Allison engine as the P-40. Utilizing new laminar flow wings, the North American fighter was expected to have performance better than the P-40. Developed in record time the new aircraft was designated as a Mustang I by the Brits, whereas the USAAF ordered two for evaluation which were designated XP-51 Apaches. Intrigued with the possibility of using this aircraft also as a dive bomber, North American proposed this to the USAAF which decided to order 500 of the P-51 aircraft to be modified for dive bombing use. Designated as the A-36 Invader, this version of the Mustang utilized dive flaps, and bomb racks under each wing. Some reinforcing of the structural members was also required because of the G-forces to be encountered in dive bombing. A-36s entered combat service with the USAAF prior to any P-51s. In early 1943 the 86th and 27th Fighter Bomber Groups of the 12th Air Force began flying A-36s out of Northern Africa. Despite some early problems with instability caused by the dive flaps, the A-36 was effective in light bombing and strafing roles. It was not, however, capable of dog fighting with German fighters, especially at higher altitudes. Despite these drawbacks one USAAF pilot, Captain Michael T. Russo, who served with the 16th Bomb Squadron of the 27th Fighter Bomber Group, was credited with five confirmed aerial victories in the A-36, thereby becoming the first mustang ace

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Mustang Recce by Robert Taylor.


Mustang Recce by Robert Taylor.
One edition.
The edition features an additional signature.
£80.00

Red Tail Patrol by Richard Taylor.


Red Tail Patrol by Richard Taylor.
One edition.
The edition features 4 additional signature(s).
£55.00

Help for the Straggler by Keith Aspinall.


Help for the Straggler by Keith Aspinall.
One edition.
£18.00


Checkertail Clan by Nicolas Trudgian


Checkertail Clan by Nicolas Trudgian
5 of 6 editions available.
4 of 5 editions featuring up to 3 additional signatures are available.
£90.00 - £180.00

Mustangs on the Prowl by Robert Taylor.


Mustangs on the Prowl by Robert Taylor.
One of 2 editions available.
The edition featuring 3 additional signatures is sold out.
£495.00

Last Man Home by Nicolas Trudgian.


Last Man Home by Nicolas Trudgian.
3 of 4 editions available.
All 4 editions feature up to 4 additional signatures.
£130.00 - £220.00


Urban 'Ben' Drew - Good Hunting by Brian Bateman. (P)


Urban 'Ben' Drew - Good Hunting by Brian Bateman. (P)
One edition.
The edition features an additional signature.
£300.00

D-Day The Airborne Assault by Robert Taylor.


D-Day The Airborne Assault by Robert Taylor.
One of 2 editions available.
The edition featuring 6 additional signatures is sold out.
£495.00

Clash of Eagles by Anthony Saunders.


Clash of Eagles by Anthony Saunders.
3 editions.
All 3 editions feature up to 2 additional signature(s).
£110.00 - £300.00


The Tuskegee Airmen by Richard Taylor.


The Tuskegee Airmen by Richard Taylor.
One edition.
The edition features 4 additional signature(s).
£120.00

Deadly Pursuit by Richard Taylor.


Deadly Pursuit by Richard Taylor.
One edition.
£65.00

Tribute to Clyde East by Ivan Berryman.


Tribute to Clyde East by Ivan Berryman.
8 editions.
£2.70 - £1100.00


Mustangs over the Reich by Stephen Brown.


Mustangs over the Reich by Stephen Brown.
3 of 4 editions available.
£35.00 - £115.00

King of the Strafers by Iain Wyllie.


King of the Strafers by Iain Wyllie.
2 editions.
One edition features 2 additional signatures.
£18.00 - £85.00

Dogfight over Asch, Belgium, 09.20 a.m., New Years Day, 1st January 1945 by David Pentland.


Dogfight over Asch, Belgium, 09.20 a.m., New Years Day, 1st January 1945 by David Pentland.
8 editions.
3 of the 8 editions feature up to 5 additional signatures.
£2.70 - £2000.00


Tribute to Hubert 'Hub' Zemke by Ivan Berryman.


Tribute to Hubert 'Hub' Zemke by Ivan Berryman.
8 editions.
£2.70 - £1100.00

Red Tail Escort by Richard Taylor.


Red Tail Escort by Richard Taylor.
4 editions.
All 4 editions feature up to 6 additional signature(s).
£95.00 - £625.00

Mustangs Over the Mediterranean by Nicolas Trudgian.


Mustangs Over the Mediterranean by Nicolas Trudgian.
5 of 6 editions available.
4 of 5 editions featuring up to 4 additional signatures are available.
£2.00 - £200.00


A Perfect Record by Stan Stokes.


A Perfect Record by Stan Stokes.
5 editions.
2 of the 5 editions feature an additional signature.
£35.00 - £294.00

Little Friends by Simon Smith.


Little Friends by Simon Smith.
4 editions.
One edition features an additional signature.
£80.00 - £300.00

Wild Horses by Gerald Coulson.


Wild Horses by Gerald Coulson.
One edition.
The edition features an additional signature.
£250.00


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Text for the above items :

Mustang Recce by Robert Taylor.

Russ Berg flies his 10th Recce Group P51s in low and fast, dodging flak and enemy fighters, to get vital photographs for General Patons advancing forces. A superb study of World War IIs most outstanding tactical fighter in action, in the hands of one of the USAAFs most distinguished and highly decorated pilots.


Red Tail Patrol by Richard Taylor.

P-51 Mustangs of the Tuskegee Airmen, high over enemy territory, returning from yet another successful bomber escort mission.


Help for the Straggler by Keith Aspinall.

P-51 Mustangs come to the aid of a damaged and struggling B-24 Liberator as Luftwaffe fighters make an attack.


Checkertail Clan by Nicolas Trudgian

With their brightly coloured checkertail tails there was no mistaking the P.51 Mustangs of the 325th Fighter Group. Escorting B-24s over Austria in August 1944, tangled with a group of Fw190 fighters. The ensuing dogfight spiraled down below the mountain peaks as Herky Green led the Checkertails in a low-level chase. Herky nails one Fw190. Behind him his pilots will take out the two Fw190. When all is done this day the 325th will be credited with 15 enemy fighters destroyed.


Mustangs on the Prowl by Robert Taylor.

Between 3 and 13 September 1944, the 55th Fighter Group flew eight arduous, highly successful, bomber escort missions to Germany for which the group received a Distinguished Unit Citation. Like those the group had flown before, and would fly again and again until the end of hostilities, each mission took them deep into enemy airspace, involved desperate combat with Luftwaffe fighters, and culminated in rapid descent to low level to strafe enemy airfields on the way home. In that ten day period of intense fighting the 55th covered themselves in glory, destroying large numbers of enemy fighters in the air and on the ground, one of their pilots becoming the top-scoring ground attack pilot of the campaign. Long-range combat missions were typical of the assignments flown by the fighters of the 8th Air Force during that period of the air war. Not content with dog-fighting at altitude, when escort duty was complete, the Eighths aggressive fighter pilots relished the opportunity to hurtle down to tree-top height and, ignoring the inevitable barrage of anti-aircraft fire, shoot up any target of opportunity upon which they could bring their guns to bear. Robert Taylors spectacular new limited edition print, the third in his acclaimed Collector Portfolio commemorating the great Air Commands of World War II, depicts the king of the Eighths ground attack Aces, Colonel Elwyn Righetti. Flying his P-51D Mustang, the 55ths CO of 338 Squadron, already with 20 plus victories to his credit, leads his pilots through the Rhine Gorge, skimming the ancient Castle of Stahleck standing above Bacharach, as they seek out enemy targets on their way back to base at Wormingford, England, in the spring of 1945. A classic Robert Taylor edition endorsed with the signatures of Aces who flew and fought the legendary P-51 Mustang in the greatest air war in history.


Last Man Home by Nicolas Trudgian.

In a scene that was repeated almost daily throughout the long war years, the pilots of the 357th Fighter Group have returned from a gruelling mission to their base in Leiston, Suffolk. As they clamber out of their aircraft, all eyes are turned anxiously skyward, awaiting the return of the last man home.


Urban 'Ben' Drew - Good Hunting by Brian Bateman. (P)

On August 25th 1944, Ben Drew found himself locked in a stalemate with the Bf109 of an experienced Luftwaffe pilot. Circling each other to try and force an advantage, the two pilots spiraled towards the ground until the German finally broke away from the Lufberry circle to escape the guns of the Mustang. With 5 of his 6 guns jammed from the extreme forces encountered while circling, Ben Drew chased his opponent, raking the fuselage with the one remaining gun. The enemy aircraft started to smoke then nosed into the ground at full throttle. As he flew over the resulting fireball, Ben remembered how his mother always ended her letters - good hunting, son..


D-Day The Airborne Assault by Robert Taylor.

It began in pitch darkness. June 6, 1944 was only a few minutes old when the Airborne Pathfinders drifted silently down from the sky above the fields of Normandy. At first their seemed nothing untoward about the drone of aircraft in the night sky. The German garrisons in Northern France were used to the noise of aircraft overhead after dark, but this night seemed particularly busy. Looking skyward a German sentry caught sight of parachutes floating down, clearly visible as the moon fleetingly broke through the clouds. For an instant he thought it was the crew jumping from a damaged bomber, but when he saw the mass of canopies floating earthwards, he knew it was no ordinary event. Within moments of raising the alarm the crackle of automatic gunfire confirmed his worst fears: The Invasion of France had begun. The first assault upon Hitlers Fortress Europe came from the sky. Shortly after midnight waves of aircraft and gliders delivered three Divisions of elite airborne troops into Normandy, their crucial objectives to seize vital bridges, secure strategic positions and clear the way for the coming aerial armada. As the first streaks of dawn came over the horizon on that historic day, and with American and British paratroops already engaged in furious fire fights, the mighty amphibious armada began landing on the beaches of Normandy. Above them waves of troop-carrying aircraft towing gliders stretched from the coast of France all the way back to England. Closely escorted by fighters, they delivered over 20,000 highly trained men into the battlefield of Northern France. By nightfall the first phase of the greatest military invasion in history was complete. Five Divisions were were ashore and the Allies had established a toehold in occupied Europe. For the Third Reich it was the beginning of the end. Without the advanced airborne assault, and the air supremacy achieved by the escort fighters, the amphibious landings could have been a disaster. Seen crossing the Normandy beaches are C-47 Dakotas of the 438th Troop Carrier Group towing CG-4 Waco gliders, closely escorted by P-51Bs of the 354 Fighter Group. Below, landing craft swarm ashore putting men and equipment on the beaches, and everything about this spectacular painting brings alive the events of that historic day a half a century ago.


Clash of Eagles by Anthony Saunders.

P-51 Mustangs of the 20th Fighter Group, flying out of Kings Cliffe to engage Me109s from JG77 in a furiously contested dogfight. Below them a formation of B-17s from the 379th Bomb Group fly through the chaos, doggedly maintaining their course, as they head on to attack the huge synthetic oil refinery at Meresburg, southern Germany, on 11 September 1944. So vital was this refinery to the Nazi war machine that it became one of the most heavily defended targets in Germany, the air defences even surpassing those of Berlin.


The Tuskegee Airmen by Richard Taylor.

P-51s of the famed Tuskegee Fighting Red Tails winding down at their airbase in Italy after a grueling long range bomber escort mission over occupied territory.


Deadly Pursuit by Richard Taylor.

During the final days of aerial combat P-51 Mustangs on a long range fighter patrol jump Bf109s in a surprise attack resulting in a deadly pursuit through the Austrian Alps.


Tribute to Clyde East by Ivan Berryman.

Clyde East joined the Royal Canadian Air Force and by 1942 was flying P-51 Mustangs with No.414 Sqn RCAF in England. He then transferred to the US Air Force, joining the 15th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron. He is shown here in P.51D Mustang 44-14306 5M-K, 'Lil Margaret', April 1945. In more than 200 missions he scored 13 victories, later serving in Korea flying RF-80 Shooting Stars and retiring in 1965. He died in 2014.


Mustangs over the Reich by Stephen Brown.

P51 Mustangs of the 336th Fighter Squadron, 4th Fighter Group range deep into the Reich in search for targets of opportunity.


King of the Strafers by Iain Wyllie.

Lt. Col. James A (Goody) Goodsons Mustang.. Goodson's first victory, an Fw-190, on 23rd June 1943, was followed by many more. He became proficient in shooting down Luftwaffe planes, and soon 15 had found they could not outfight him. In the meantime, he became known as the King of the Strafers, wrapping up 15 enemy aircraft destroyed on the ground for a total of 30 destroyed. The end of his combat with the 4th Fighter Group was not the least unusual. Now a Major and CO of the 336th Squadron, he strafed Neu Brandenburg airfield in Germany. A 20mm found its mark and he was badly wounded in his legs, but managed to crash-land and hobble off to a nearby wood. He kept on the run for a week before being captured. He was questioned by the Gestapo and summarily thrown into solitary to be shot the next morning. Jim, who spoke German well, cleverly convinced the SS that he was too valuable to the Reich alive and was transferred to the Luftwaffe's jurisdiction. He was welcomed and duly interrogated by Hanns Scharf, the Luftwaffe's master interrogator. He was assigned to Stalag Luft III, and was greeted by many of his friends who had preceded him.


Dogfight over Asch, Belgium, 09.20 a.m., New Years Day, 1st January 1945 by David Pentland.

As the four P51D Mustangs of Major William T Haltons Yellow Flight, 487th Fighter Squadron took off from Asch, they found themselves in the middle of a massive German attack. That New Years Day the Luftwaffe had launched hundreds of aircraft in low level raids against the allied airfields across Northern France and Belgium. The unexpected take-off by the 487th however, ended Jagdgeswader 11s chances of success, with Yellow Flight alone claiming 9 enemy aircraft destroyed.


Tribute to Hubert 'Hub' Zemke by Ivan Berryman.

Hub Zemke lends his name to 'Zemke's Wolf Pack', the 56th Fighter Group that became deadly with the P-47 Thunderbolt thanks to his tactics with the machine. He scored a total of 17.75 victories in the war, mostly with this unit, but is depicted here on 26th September 1944 flying a P-51 Mustang with the 479th Fighter Group. He scored just 2.5 victories with this unit, but the one depicted here is over the German Ace Alfred Grislawski in his Me109 - a victory that injured Grislawski and meant he took no further combat role in the war. At the end of October, Hub Zemke's airframe failed in turbulence and he bailed out to be taken prisoner for the rest of the war. Amongst his many decorations are the Distinguished Service Cross and Distinguished Flying Cross as well as the Purple Heart. He died aged 80 in 1994.


Red Tail Escort by Richard Taylor.

With the words of his Group CO ringing in his ears, a pilot of the 332nd Fighter Group returns to protect a crippled American B17 bomber after downing two Me109s in quick succession. Agonisingly, two more enemy fighters were left to escape but the pilot knew that under the strict leadership of Colonel Benjamin O Davis, his mission, and that if the other all-black pilots of the 332nd, was solely to protect the bombers. That iron discipline was to earn this famous unit the respect and admiration of hundreds of bomber crews, and to create a legend. Despite lingering racial prejudice and some opposition within the Air Force, President Roosevelt had ordered the USAAF to form an all-black fighter pilot unit, its crews to be trained at Tuskegee in Alabama. To the surprise of their critics, the Tuskegee Airmen were to prove their detractors spectacularly wrong from the first day they went into action in Italy in May 1943. Flying first with the Twelfth Air Force, then the Fifteenth, the four squadrons of the 332nd completed over 15,000 combat sorties, destroyed over 250 Luftwaffe aircraft in the air and on the ground, 950 railway trucks and locomotives, and even sunk a destroyer by machine gun fire! The Group was awarded a Presidential Unit Citation, their pilots decorated with over 1000 medals for gallantry. But above all, with the spinners and tails of their P-51 Mustangs brightly painted red, the Red Tails as they were affectionately known, became the only US Fighter Group that never lost a bomber in their care. The Tuskegee Red Tail pilots of the 332nd Fighter Group are a more than welcome sight as they close in to escort home a damaged B17 Fortress of the 483rd Bomb Group. Seen high over the Italian Alps during the summer of 1944 this poignant scene conveys precisely the story of the legendary Red Tails.


Mustangs Over the Mediterranean by Nicolas Trudgian.

Mustangs of the 31st Fighter Group pass low over an Italian fishing village, heading out on another combat patrol.


A Perfect Record by Stan Stokes.

At the time of World War II there was still a great deal of prejudice in America, and this extended to all the branches of the military. Although black soldiers and seaman fought with dignity and bravery during WW I, many thought that blacks were incapable of handling difficult assignments. It was therefore with great uncertainty and trepidation that the Army Air Corps authorized the training of black pilots in 1941. The Air Corps proposed that a segregated training program be established. Judge William Hastie, Dean of the Howard University Law School, who was serving as a Civilian Assistant for Negro Affairs to the Secretary of War, protested about the segregated training, but his complaints were ignored. Hastie also proposed that the Army consider affiliating with the Tuskegee Institute which had already established a pilot training program. The Army allocated $1 million for the construction of the Tuskegee Army Air Field. The men sent to Tuskegee had to pass rigorous physical tests and pass nine weeks of ground school. They then received their basic flight instruction from instructors with the Civilian Instructor Corps. Those who passed moved on to more sophisticated military training for another seventy hours of flight time. A third phase of advanced training followed after which pilot cadets received their wings and were appointed to an initial rank of either 2nd Lieutenant or Flight Officer. Only about 60% of the cadets made it through the program, and many were killed or injured in flying accidents during training. Captain Noel Parish who oversaw much of the training at Tuskegee was a vocal supporter of the men under his command. Despite their ability to successfully handle the Air Corps training program, considerable hostility was still evident and the Army was reluctant to assign Tuskegee graduates to combat units. This created a difficult morale problem for those who had earned their wings and were now anxious to see combat. Finally, in the spring of 1943, the 99th Fighter Squadron headed for North Africa. In June of 1943 the 99th finally saw combat flying P-40s. On July 2 Lt. Charles Hall became the first black aviator to record an aerial victory in WW II. The 99th played an important role in preparing for the invasion of Sicily. The 332nd Fighter Group (under the command of then Lt. Col. Benjamin O. Davis, Jr.) consisting of the 100th, 301st, and 302nd fighter squadrons entered combat in Italy flying P-39s in early 1944. By mid-1944 the Group was receiving P-47s, but in another about face the Air Corps quickly substituted P-51s. At this time the 99th FS was folded into the 332nd FG. From mid-1944 until the end of the War in Europe the Tuskegee Airmen of the 332nd FG flew an incredible number of missions. They generally escorted Fifteenth Air Force bombers on their attacks into Germany from bases in Italy. The red-tailed fighters of the 332nd FG had the distinction of having a perfect record - losing no escorted bombers to enemy fighter attack during the entire War. In Stan Stokes painting, the P-51 piloted by Charles E. McGee, who would also go on to fly combat missions in both Korea and Vietnam, is depicted over a Czech airfield on August 24, 1944. On this mission McGee would down an Fw-190.


Little Friends by Simon Smith.

The aircraft in the foreground bears the name Alabama Rammer Jammer, the personal mount of 2/Lt Arthur Cundy ,352nd FS, 353rd FG. The 353rds yellow and black chequered nose bands were one of the most distinctive recognition features of all the Eighths fighter groups.


Wild Horses by Gerald Coulson.

In a majestic new painting combining his love of landscape with aviation, Gerald Coulson depicts Bud Anderson and Chuck Yeager racing their Mustangs at low level through an Alpine landscape, oblivious to the record-breaking air battle involving the rest of the 357th pilots.

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