Developed as a fighter interceptor, the North American P-51 Mustang was widely used during the Second World War, both in a fighter and fighter-bomber role. New Zealand ordered 130 Mustangs in early 1945 but the first 30 of these were placed in storage when they arrived in the country later in the year due to the end of the war. The remainder of the order was cancelled. In 1951, the stored Mustangs were assembled for use by the New Zealand Territorial Air Force and equipped four of its fighter squadrons until withdrawn from service in 1955. A few were also operated by the Royal New Zealand Air Force until 1957. The surviving Mustangs were sold off, most of them for scrap.
Background
The North American P-51 Mustang was developed as a result of an approach, made in January 1940, to North American Aviation (NAA) by Sir Henry Self, who was in charge of the New York office of the British Purchasing Commission (BPC). This organisation sought to obtain military aircraft for use by the Royal Air Force in the Second World War. The BPC agreed to purchase 400 examples of a fighter interceptor to be built by NAA and this led to a prototype, designated NA-73X, which first flew on 26 October. The production version of the aircraft was subsequently designated 'Mustang' by the BPC, which increased the size of its order to 700 examples. The United States Army Air Force (USAAF) also ordered 138 Mustangs the following year.
Ultimately, the Mustang served with the air forces of a number of countries. In addition to the RAF, examples also flew with the Royal Australian Air Force, the Royal Canadian Air Force, the Swedish Air Force, the French Armee de L'air, the Israeli Defence Force, and the Philippine Air Force among others.
Acquisition
In early 1945 the New Zealand government purchased 130 P-51D Mustangs, to be delivered towards the end of the year at a cost of US$61,000 per aircraft plus shipping expenses. The P-51D was the most numerous of the various Mustang models, a total of 8,102 being built by the end of the war.
At the time of their purchase, the intention was for the P-51Ds to operate alongside, and then replace, the Vought F4U Corsair fighter bombers being used by the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) in the Southwest Pacific theatre of operations, supporting United States forces during the Solomon Islands campaign. The Corsairs were to then be phased out of service in 1946, the P-51D being the principal fighter aircraft to be operated.
The first 30 Mustangs were delivered to New Zealand in August–September, along with 12 spare Rolls-Royce Merlin engines. By this time, the Second World War was over, Japan having surrendered following the Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The Mustangs were deemed to be surplus to requirements and the remainder of the order was cancelled. However, the aircraft already in New Zealand could not be returned. They were duly placed on the RNZAF inventory as NZ2401 to NZ2430 but put into storage at RNZAF Station Hobsonville. Later, they were moved to the stores depot at Te Rapa and then onto Ardmore.
Operational history
Territorial Air Force
In late 1948, the long dormant Territorial Air Force (TAF) was reestablished as part of the New Zealand government's moves to improve its ability to mobilise its military forces in the event of an outbreak of hostilities. The TAF squadrons were intended to have a fighter role but there were no available aircraft at the time. Accordingly, a decision was made by the RNZAF to activate the stored Mustangs. Beginning in August 1951, the Mustangs were taken out of storage, assembled, and delivered to the TAF squadrons. Recruitment to the TAF had been slow, not helped by the usage of the dated de Havilland Tiger Moth and North American Harvards that initially equipped the four TAF squadrons but improved once the Mustangs entered service.
The first TAF squadron to receive its allotment of four Mustangs was No. 4 (Otago) Squadron. The following year, each of No. 1 to No. 3 Squadrons received five Mustangs. The remaining Mustangs, seven in total, were assembled and placed in storage at Rukuhia to be called upon as replacement aircraft for the TAF. During assembly, one was found to have been damaged, probably when its crate was dropped when being disembarked on arrival in New Zealand. It and another of the replacements were subsequently cannibalised for parts without ever seeing service.