P-51 Mustang

P51 Mustang fighter aircraft. Aviation art prints of the P-51 Mustang by aviation artists Robert Taylor, David Pentland, Anthony Saunders. Aviation art prints showing P51D Mustangs of 353rd Fighter Group and P51 Mustangs on long range fighter escort duty over Germany available from Cranston Fine Arts.

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 86^th and 27^th Fighter Bomber Groups of the 12^th 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 16^th Bomb Squadron of the 27^th Fighter Bomber Group, was credited with five confirmed aerial victories in the A-36, thereby becoming the first mustang ace

SHOWCASE PRODUCT

EDITIONS

Pilot Signed Prints - The Hunting Party Price : £145

Pilot Signed Print - In Them We Trust.. Price : £125

Two Pilot Sigs Print - Freedom Fighters. Price : £160

Pilot Signed Original Drawing - 501 Sqn Scramble. Price : £380

Pilot Signed Original Drawing - 41 Sqn Scramble. Price : £380

ARTIST
Featured Artist - Ivan Berryman

Ivan Berryman - Battle of Britain Art

Artist Ivan Berryman has been producing many pencil drawings depicting scenes from the Battle of Britain. Each of these is signed by one of the pilots who was actually present at the battle, and is often inspired by the events they took part in themselves. Special signed print editions have also been created from existing full colour print editions, with some featuring multiple pilot signatures. You can find all of Ivan's Battle of Britain artwork on his website - www.ivanberryman.com, or see a full list of pencil drawings - updated regularly, in our dedicated section of pencil drawings.

When you go to a product page for an item in our shop, click on the names of the pilots where they are linked in the text for an item to see a profile page for that pilot. Often we include photos of signing sessions along with details of their flying career, and a full list of all items signed by the pilot.

Pilot Signed Battle of Britain Prints and Original Pencil Drawings

Commemorating the 70th Anniversary of the Battle of Britain

We are busy building up a portfolio of many many original pencil drawings which depict events from the Battle of Britain, the famous air battle won by 'the Few' in the summer of 1940. The British and Commonwealth pilots defended the air above Britain and the surrounding seaways from the might of the German Luftwaffe. Greatly outnumbered, the bravery of these young pilots saved the country from invasion, and let Britain survive to go on to defeat Germany. Without that first crucial victory, the outcome of the war could have been so very different. We have been busy arranging signing sessions with the few pilots who fought in that great battle who remain with us to this day. Our newly commissioned pencil drawings are often based on the descriptions of the battle by these great men, and are authenticated by their signatures. We have also had several editions of existing prints signed in full, or have signatures added to parts of existing editions. We have also incoporated signatures of some of the German pilots who also took part in the battle, some of whom went on to become top scoring aces of the war. See our Original Pencil Drawings Section - particularly the section of artists David Pentland and Ivan Berryman. Also, see our New Signature Editions section to see all of our newly signed editions.

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