[RavenHawk1988]

Allison Mustangs reported to be nice as handling, flying. It was very fast at that time, but climb rate wasn't significantly better than the P-40's and P-39's climbe rates. As it got the Merlin (rather Packard-Merlin) engine and four bladed airscrew, it had lost all of it's nice handling, that was the price of the exceptional performance. This performance only could thank for the laminar flow wings, imho. Without it the Mustang would be nothing more but another gray aircarft in the history of flying. The Mustang had an exceptional speed and range, but nothing else was exceptional, rather medicore. Lot of people thinks that it was a good maneuvering fighter. Actually all of it's opponent was better in turnfight, dogfight and even climbing. The Mustang was a boom-and-zoom figter, as well almost all of the american fighters. The plus annoying thing is the ass kicking feeling when you fly it, and it will stop when the fuselage tank got empty. Unfortunatelly in the game that's the last what got empty. :roll: This is a very big shortcoming of the game, that you cannot choose what fueltank comes first, second, etc...

RavenHawk1988, just a personal question to you: Did you try the Mustang in turnfight/dogfight against other single engined fighters (Messerschmits, Focke Wulfs, Japanes fighters, Russian Fighters; Yaks, Las), didn't you? I think that is your problem, as mine as well. Don't think because it looks so cool it can do everything. You will be downed soon in a traditional dogfight, the Mustang is not a Spitfire. :-?

(Maybe starnge but I can fly the much larger P-38 in a hot turnfight against Ki-61s for example. The Lightning has a very nice steady turning characterstic at very low speed... :wink: )

Well, actually the P-51 is one of my least favorite aircraft because it's so easy to spin out with a full tank. It does look nice, and I like to take a stab at it every once in a while, but I end up getting frustrated with it and go back to BF-109's or some others. Another reason I never completely write it off is because it was apparently such a great aircraft, and I simply can't see why, atleast not in IL2. Though truth be told, I don't think they did a good job with it, judging from what I've read here.

But yeah, I'd never take a P-51 into an online fight. I was dogfighting with a friend who just got the game a few months ago and he picked the mustang based on its performance in one of microsoft's flight sims and was shocked at how poorly it handles in IL2. He was spinning out more often than not.