The CAC Mustang is an Australian variant of the

North American P-51 Mustang The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter aircraft, fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in April 1940 by a team ...

. It was built under license by

Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation The Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation (CAC) was an Australian aircraft manufacturer. The CAC was established in 1936, to provide Australia with the capability to produce military aircraft and engines. History In 1935 the Chief General Manager ...

in the final stages of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, and though it was too late to see combat, it did participate in the

Occupation of Japan Japan was occupied and administered by the victorious Allies of World War II from the 1945 surrender of the Empire of Japan at the end of the war until the Treaty of San Francisco took effect in 1952. The occupation, led by the United States wi ...

after

VJ-Day Victory over Japan Day (also known as V-J Day, Victory in the Pacific Day, or V-P Day) is the day on which Imperial Japan surrendered in World War II, in effect bringing the war to an end. The term has been applied to both of the days on ...

Design and development

In December 1942, the

Australian War Cabinet A war cabinet is a committee formed by a government in a time of war to efficiently and effectively conduct that war. It is usually a subset of the full executive cabinet of ministers, although it is quite common for a war cabinet to have senior ...

made arrangements for the local production of the P-51D Mustang. These arrangements were finalized in November 1943, with Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation to build 690 aircraft through kits supplied by

North American Aviation North American Aviation (NAA) was a major American aerospace manufacturer that designed and built several notable aircraft and spacecraft. Its products included: the T-6 Texan trainer, the P-51 Mustang fighter, the B-25 Mitchell bomber, the F ...

(NAA). Only the first 100 unassembled aircraft were delivered, and four reportedly had the "razorback" style canopy of the P-51B/C variant. 80 of the kits were assembled under the designation CA-17 Mustang Mk 20 with Packard V-1710-3 Merlin engines, the remainder being used for spare parts. The end of the war led to most of the orders being canceled. In late 1946, CAC received a contract to build 170 (later reduced to 120) Mustangs locally from scratch. These aircraft carried the new designation CA-18, with the first 40 being designated Mustang Mk 21 and powered by Packard V-1710-7 Merlins. 66 Mustang Mk 23s followed with British-built Rolls-Royce Merlin 66 or 70 engines. 14 Mustang Mk 22

reconnaissance aircraft A reconnaissance aircraft (colloquially, a spy plane) is a military aircraft designed or adapted to perform aerial reconnaissance with roles including collection of imagery intelligence (including using photography), signals intelligence, as ...

were built with

F24 camera The F24 camera is a 1920s British camera used for aerial reconnaissance by British and Allied armed forces into the mid-1950s. It is widely and erroneously referred to as F.24 or F-24. Design and development The outline design of the F24 camer ...

s, and a further 14 were converted from Mk 21s.Anderson 1975, p. 3. Additional orders for the CA-18 and 250 two-seat variants to be produced as the CA-21 were canceled in favor of US-supplied P-51D/Ks.

Operational history

The first production CA-17 Mustang Mk 20,

serial number A serial number is a unique identifier assigned incrementally or sequentially to an item, to ''uniquely'' identify it. Serial numbers need not be strictly numerical. They may contain letters and other typographical symbols, or may consist enti ...

''A68-01'' (not to be confused with the US-built prototype ''A68-1001''), made its first flight on 29 April 1945 from

Fishermans Bend, Victoria Fishermans Bend (formerly Fishermen's Bend) is a precinct within the City of Port Phillip and the City of Melbourne. It is located on the south of the Yarra River in the suburb of Port Melbourne and opposite Coode Island, close to the Melbourne ...

. The aircraft was handed over to the RAAF on 4 June 1945 and was tested by the No. 1 Aircraft Performance Unit. Trials ended in October 1946, and the aircraft was placed in storage until 1953. Only 17 CA-17s were delivered to the RAAF by VJ-Day. The first operational units to receive the CAC Mustang were No. 84 and No. 86 Squadron. Additional squadrons equipped with Mustangs (both American and locally-built) were No. 3, No. 4, No. 76, No. 77, and No. 82 Squadron as well as No. 21, No. 22, No. 23, No. 24, and No. 25 Squadron of the Citizen Air Force. The RAAF replaced its last Mustangs with

de Havilland Vampire The de Havilland Vampire is a British jet fighter which was developed and manufactured by the de Havilland, de Havilland Aircraft Company. It was the second jet fighter to be operated by the Royal Air Force, RAF, after the Gloster Meteor, and ...

s in 1959, while the last Mustang-equipped Citizen Air Force squadron, No. 24, retained its Mustangs until the CAF was disbanded in 1960.

Variants

;CA-17 Mustang Mk 20 :Aircraft built from kits supplied by NAA with V-1710-3 engines. 80 built. ;CA-18 Mustang Mk 21 :Locally-built aircraft with V-1710-7 engines. 40 built. ;CA-18 Mustang Mk 22 :Reconnaissance variant with

s. 14 newly built aircraft and 14 converted from Mk 21s. ;CA-18 Mustang Mk 23 :Variant with British Merlin 66 or 70 engines. 66 built. ;CA-21 Mustang Mk 24 :Two-seat variant of the CA-18. 250 ordered but not built. ;Dart Mustang :Civilian modification of a CA-18 Mustang with a

Rolls-Royce Dart The Rolls-Royce RB.53 Dart is a turboprop engine designed and manufactured by Rolls-Royce Limited. First run in 1946, it powered the Vickers Viscount on its maiden flight in 1948. A flight on July 29 of that year, which carried 14 paying passe ...

turboprop engine. 1 modified from a Mustang Mk 22 but never flown in this configuration.

Survivors

;Australia *''A68-71'' – CA-17 Mustang Mk 20 under restoration for display in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Victoria. *''A68-104'' – CA-18 Mustang Mk 21 under restoration to airworthy. *''A68-105'' – CA-18 Mustang Mk 21 airworthy at Tyabb, Victoria. Owned by Judy Pay and Richard Hourigan and painted as Mustang Mk IV KH677/CV-P. *''A68-107'' – CA-18 Mustang Mk 21 airworthy at Pay's Air Service in

Scone, New South Wales Scone is a town in the Upper Hunter Shire in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. At the 2006 census, Scone had a population of 5,624 people. It is on the New England Highway north of Muswellbrook about 270 kilometres north of Sydney ...

. *''A68-110'' – CA-18 Mustang Mk 21 airworthy at Caboolture Warplane Museum in

Caboolture, Queensland Caboolture () is a town and suburb in Moreton Bay Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the suburb of Caboolture had a population of 26,433 people. It is located on the north side of the Caboolture River, which separates the town from Morayfi ...

. Painted as P-51D A68-769. *''A68-118'' – CA-18 Mustang Mk 21 airworthy at

Morwell, Victoria Morwell is a town in the Latrobe Valley area of Gippsland, in South-Eastern Victoria, Australia approximately 152 km (94 mi) east of Melbourne. Morwell has a population of 14,389 people at the . It is both the seat of local governme ...

. Owned by Jeff Trappett. *''A68-137'' – CA-18 Mustang Mk 23 in storage. *''A68-170 "Duffy's Delight"'' – CA-18 Mustang Mk 23 airworthy with the Air Force Heritage Squadron,

RAAF Base Point Cook Point Cook is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Wyndham local government area. Point Cook recorded a population of 66,781 at the 2021 census. Point Cook ...

. *''A68-199'' – CA-18 Mustang Mk 22 airworthy at

Shellharbour Airport Shellharbour Airport, formerly Illawarra Regional Airport, also referred as Albion Park Aerodrome or Wollongong Airport, is an airport located in Albion Park Rail, Shellharbour City, New South Wales, Australia. The Historical Aircraft Restor ...

, New South Wales. Owned by Shaun Browne. ;United Kingdom * ''A68-5'' – remains of scrapped CA-17 Mustang Mk 20 in storage at Classic Flying Machine Collection. ;United States * ''A68-1'' – CA-17 Mustang Mk 20 airworthy painted as P-51D 44-15757 ''"Jeannie Too"''. Privately owned in

Troy, Alabama Troy is a city in and the county seat of Pike County, Alabama, United States. It was formally incorporated on February 4, 1843. Between 1763 and 1783, the area where Troy sits was part of the colony of British West Florida.The Economy of Brit ...

. * ''A68-39'' – CA-17 Mustang Mk 20 airworthy at Erickson Aircraft Collection in

Madras, Oregon Madras ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Jefferson County, Oregon, United States. Originally called "The Basin" after the circular valley the city is in, it is unclear whether Madras was named in 1903 for the cotton fabric called " Madras" ...

. Painted as P-51D 44-14826. * ''A68-100'' – CA-18 Mustang Mk 21 airworthy painted as P-51D 44-14777 ''"Flying Dutchman"''. Privately owned in

Snellville, Georgia Snellville is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States, east of Atlanta. The population was 18,242 at the 2010 census, and in 2019 the estimated population was 20,077. It is a developed suburb of Atlanta and a part of the Atlanta metro ...

. * ''A68-175'' – CA-18 Mustang Mk 23 airworthy painted as P-51D 44-74950 ''"Slender Tender Tall"''. Privately owned in

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington ( Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...

. * ''A68-187'' – CA-18 Mustang Mk 22 airworthy at Lewis Air Legends in

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...

, Texas. Painted as P-51D 44-74839 ''"La Pistolera"''. * ''A68-198'' – CA-18 Mustank Mk 22 airworthy painted as P-51D 45-11483 ''"Short-Fuse-Salle"''. Privately owned in

Ozona, Texas Ozona is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) that serves as the county seat of Crockett County, Texas, United States. The population was 3,225 at the time of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. Ozona is the onl ...

Replica

A full-scale replica of a CA-18 Mustang Mk 23 is located at the

Queensland Air Museum The Queensland Air Museum is a not-for-profit community-owned aviation museum located at Caloundra Airport in Queensland, Australia. Its mission is to collect and preserve all aspects of aviation heritage with an emphasis on Australia and Queens ...

at the Caloundra Airport. Construction of the replica began in May 2005 and was placed on static display on 27 December 2008. It carries the fictitious serial number ''A68-201'', continuing the original sequence which ended with ''A68-200''.

Accidents and incidents

* 12 April 1962 – CA-18 Mustang Mk 21, ''G-ARUK'' (ex-''A68-113''), piloted by Ron Flockhart, entered a cloud and crashed into the

Dandenong Ranges The Dandenong Ranges (commonly just The Dandenongs) are a set of low mountain ranges, rising to 633 metres at Mount Dandenong, approximately east of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The ranges consist mostly of rolling hills, steeply weathere ...

Victoria, Australia Victoria is a state in southeastern Australia. It is the second-smallest state with a land area of , the second most populated state (after New South Wales) with a population of over 6.5 million, and the most densely populated state in Au ...

. Flockhart was killed in the accident. * 27 June 1970 – CA-18 Mustang Mk 22, ''VH-DBB'' (ex-''A68-193''), piloted by Donald Busch, stalled and crashed after completing a flyover at an airshow in

Bendigo Bendigo ( ) is a city in Victoria, Australia, located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital. As of 2019, Bendigo had an urban population of 100,991, makin ...

, Australia. The aircraft caught fire, killing Busch. * 11 June 1973 – CA-18 Mustang Mk 21, ''VH-IVI'' (ex-''A68-119''), was destroyed in a crash in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, Australia, killing its pilot, Raymond J. Whitebread. * 19 October 1973 – CA-18 Mustang Mk 22, ''PI-C651'' (ex-''A68-192''), crash landed at

Manila International Airport Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA , ; fil, Paliparang Pandaigdig ng Ninoy Aquino or ''Pandaigdigang Paliparan ng Ninoy Aquino''; ), originally known and still commonly referred to as Manila International Airport (MIA), is the main ...

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. The aircraft was subsequently rebuilt, crashing again on 10 July 2011 after suffering a mid-air collision. * 6 June 1976 – CA-18 Mustang Mk 22 "''Miss Zulu''", ''VH-BOZ'' (ex-''A68-199''), crashed on takeoff in

Bankstown Bankstown is a suburb south west of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is 16 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district and is located in the local government area of the City of Canterbury-Bankstown, hav ...

, Australia. The aircraft was subsequently rebuilt, and as of 2019 it flies under the registration ''VH-URZ''. * 5 July 1976 – CA-17 Mustang Mk 20 "''Miss Yankee''", ''VH-BOY'' (ex-''A68-39''), crashed in Bankstown, Australia. The aircraft was subsequently rebuilt, and as of 2002 it flies under the registration ''N551D''. * 5 August 1993 – CA-18 Mustang Mk 22 "''The Best Years Of Our Lives''", ''F-AZIE'' (ex-''A68-198''), suffered an in-flight fire. The aircraft was badly damaged, but returned to the skies the following year. As of 2002, it flies as "''Short Fuse Salle''" (''N286JB''). * 10 July 2011 – CA-18 Mustang Mk 22 "''Big Beautiful Doll''", ''D-FBBD'' (ex-''A68-192''), collided in mid-air with Douglas A-1D Skyraider ''F-AZDP'' (ex-''Bu. 124143'') in Duxford, UK. Rob Davies, the pilot of the Mustang, bailed out, and his aircraft crashed in a nearby field. The pilot of the Skyraider managed to safely land the damaged aircraft, despite losing its right wingtip. This was the same aircraft as the one that crashed on 19 October 1973.

Specifications (CA-18 Mustang Mk 21)

References

Bibliography

* Anderson, Peter N. ''Mustangs of the RAAF and RNZAF''. Sydney, Australia: A.H & A.W Reed PTY Ltd, 1975. . {{ADF aircraft designations Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation aircraft 1940s Australian fighter aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Low-wing aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1945 North American P-51 Mustang Retractable conventional landing gear