P-51D

Peter Duniho wrote:

That said, I personally find it ironic that people bemoan the loss of an
object that was designed specifically for the purpose of putting it into
harm's way. We destroyed thousands (?) of these planes through their
normal usage, but lose one or two here and there each year, and it's some
great loss.

If 14,000 of them remained, maybe people would not consider losing one or
two as great a loss. Except, of course, the owners (and assuming no one got
hurt).

From http://www.mustangsmustangs.net/p-51...rs/index.shtml

Total Complete P-51 Survivors 281
P-51's in airworthy condition 152
On Display (non-flying) 57
Repairs / Restoration 45
In Storage 22
Unknown 5

that's 152 flyables out of something like 14,000 built. Probably less than
152 as P-51D 44-74466 "Barbara Jean" had an engine failure last weekend and
ended up bent and battered - luckily the pilot is safe.


--
Saville

Replicas of 15th-19th century nautical navigational instruments:

http://home.comcast.net/~saville/backstaffhome.html

Restoration of my 82 year old Herreshoff S-Boat sailboat:

http://home.comcast.net/~saville/SBOATrestore.htm

Steambending FAQ with photos:

http://home.comcast.net/~saville/Steambend.htm

"gregg" wrote in message
...
If 14,000 of them remained, maybe people would not consider losing one or
two as great a loss. Except, of course, the owners (and assuming no one
got
hurt).

A single P-51 lost still represents well under 1% of the total fleet. What
percentage was lost during their intended use? A lot greater than that, I'd
guess.

On 7/17/05 5:42 PM, in article , "Peter
Duniho" spewed:

"gregg" wrote in message
...
If 14,000 of them remained, maybe people would not consider losing one or
two as great a loss. Except, of course, the owners (and assuming no one
got
hurt).

A single P-51 lost still represents well under 1% of the total fleet. What
percentage was lost during their intended use? A lot greater than that, I'd
guess.



Each P-51 represents more than just a number in a fleet, they are history.
And damned good looking history at that. As the numbers slowly diminish,
each one takes on a greater representative portion and the history buffs
among us cringe at each passing.
--
Jeff 'The Wizard of Draws' Bucchino

Cartoons with a Touch of Magic�
http://www.wizardofdraws.com

More Cartoons with a Touch of Magic�
http://www.cartoonclipart.com

Each P-51 represents more than just a number in a fleet, they are history.
And damned good looking history at that. As the numbers slowly diminish,
each one takes on a greater representative portion and the history buffs
among us cringe at each passing.

My son has grown up appreciating the unmistakable song of the Merlin engine
in a P-51 Mustang. He has been able to identify Mustangs in flight,
without looking up, since he was five years old. (He's attended Oshkosh 14
times...)

I suspect he will, one day, hear if for the last time. I hope I don't live
that long.

For those who don't know the song, here it is:

http://alexisparkinn.com/photogallery/Videos/merlin[1].wav

And, just because I love the sound, here's another:

http://alexisparkinn.com/photogallery/Videos/p51[1].wav
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Jay Honeck wrote:

I suspect he will, one day, hear if for the last time. I hope I don't live
that long.

I expect Mustangs will be flying somewhere long after he's dead, but people may
have to really work to go hear one. After all, you can still see and hear a 1911
Bleriot fly if you're willing to travel to mid-State New York.

George Patterson
Why do men's hearts beat faster, knees get weak, throats become dry,
and they think irrationally when a woman wears leather clothing?
Because she smells like a new truck.

I suspect he will, one day, hear if for the last time. I hope I don't
live that long.

I expect Mustangs will be flying somewhere long after he's dead, but
people may have to really work to go hear one. After all, you can still
see and hear a 1911 Bleriot fly if you're willing to travel to mid-State
New York.

I hope you're right, George.

With insurance more and more dictating who flies what, when, and where, it
doesn't seem likely -- but maybe we'll some day find a way around the
problems of decreasing numbers, increasing values, and chicken-sh*t
liability laws...
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Jay Honeck wrote:

With insurance more and more dictating who flies what, when, and where, it
doesn't seem likely -- but maybe we'll some day find a way around the
problems of decreasing numbers, increasing values, and chicken-sh*t
liability laws...

Well, you might have to take a trip overseas to hear one, then. Perhaps Duxford?

George Patterson
Why do men's hearts beat faster, knees get weak, throats become dry,
and they think irrationally when a woman wears leather clothing?
Because she smells like a new truck.

"Peter Duniho" wrote:

A single P-51 lost still represents well under 1% of the total fleet. What
percentage was lost during their intended use? A lot greater than that, I'd
guess.

Your point, such as it is, merely demonstrates that sometimes absolute
numbers are more relevant than percentages.

It's wonderful that it [the Mona Lisa] exists, but there would be absolutely
no suffering in the world should the original Mona Lisa painting be
destroyed. Some people would irrationally bemoan the loss of the painting
(forgetting that the painting WILL eventually be destroyed one way or the
other), but that doesn't make it useful.

Most parents would mourn the death of their young child. By your
logic, such mourning would be "irrational" because the child would
"eventually be destroyed one way or the other". If you claim that
such parental mourning is not irrational, then your arguments in this
thread fail. If we accept that such parental mourning is indeed
irrational but nevertheless reasonable, understandable, and
acceptable, then your arguments in this thread fail. If you claim
that your arguments in this thread apply only to inanimate objects,
then your arguments fail. If you don't agree that such parental
mourning is reasonable, understandable, and acceptable, then you are
disconnected from normal human feeling and your arguments in this
thread become irrelevant.

- Ken -

"Ken" wrote in message
...
Most parents would mourn the death of their young child. By your
logic, such mourning would be "irrational"

It IS irrational. Mourning is an entirely emotional, non-rational (that is,
irrational) process.

It seems many people in this thread would benefit from consulting a
dictionary and reading up on the definition of "irrational". In particular,
to note that there are several definitions, not all of which imply insanity.
Those people seem to think that being "irrational" is somehow something to
be avoided. The fact is, as human beings, we act irrationally all the time.

Get over it.

It IS irrational. Mourning is an entirely emotional, non-rational (that is,
irrational) process.

However, attepmting to prevent something which would cause one to mourn
is entirely rational.

Jose
--
Nothing takes longer than a shortcut.
for Email, make the obvious change in the address.