Any P51 experts out here?

"John Miller" wrote in message
...
Dudley Henriques wrote:
Thanks much Pete. This training manual supposedly says that the 51
can't hold a slip due to aileron or rudder issues that make it
straighten out if the pilot tries to hold it in a slip.
I've done hundreds of slips to both sides in this airplane and never
had such an issue. I'm assuming the training manual was written as an
aid in transitioning low time pilots into the high performance 51, as
the dash one specifically states that slips are not an issue.

Just guessing here -- if a slip (in the P51) approaches a stall, is
its behavior particularly treacherous?

Any aircraft, whether in a slip or not, that approaches it's critical
angle of attack (stall) can be dangerous if close to the ground. Slips
are not done at AOA close to stall. AOA is controlled in a slip by pitch
the same way it is in non cross controlled flight. The Mustang, having a
laminar wing can stall more quickly than say an aircraft with a higher
cambered wing.
To eliminate pilots bending the sheet metal, it is usually recommended
that slips in the 51 end at or above 200 feet AGL.
Dudley Henriques
International Fighter Pilots Fellowship
Commercial Pilot/CFI Retired
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dhenriques(at)(delete all this)earthlink(dot)net