North American P/F-82G Twin Mustang 1/32 Scale Mahogany Model

Introducing the ready-built AF82TE Desktop Model. This 1/32 scale model was handmade with precision and accuracy to produce the finest model that will be the centerpiece of your collection for years to come. This model is a perfect gift for pilots and aviation enthusiasts alike. Not too big or too small, this model features a wingspan of 16.25 inches and a length of 20.5 inches. This model features a very accurate paint scheme with realistic panel lines.

This collectible model P/F-82G Twin Mustang represents one of the more unusual aircraft ever built, a fighter-bomber that appears to be two planes in one. This executive model is painstakingly built from Philippine mahogany by skilled craftsmen using a wealth of detail. This 1/32-scale model P/F-82G Twin Mustang makes a great pilot gift, or a present for any veteran, aviation enthusiast or history buff.

The North American F-82 Twin Mustang was the last American piston-engine fighter ordered into production by the U.S. Air Force. Based on the P-51 Mustang, the F-82 was originally designed as a long-range escort fighter in for B-29 Superfortress World War II, however the war ended well before the first production units were operational, so its postwar role changed to that of night-fighting.

Although the Twin Mustang appears to be simply two P-51 Mustangs grafted together, it was actually a new design. The airframe was based on two P-51 fuselages lengthened by a 57-inch plug behind the cockpit, adding space for fuel and more equipment. A center wing section held six .50-caliber machine guns, and the outer wings included hard points for fuel tanks or bombs.

Powered by two Allison V-1710 liquid-cooled engines of 1,380 horsepower each, the Twin Mustang could reach 482 mph and had a range of over 2,300 miles. The Twin Mustang was one of the first American fighters to fly combat missions in Korea following the June 1950 Communist invasion.

The F-82G Twin Mustang is the night fighter version, equipped with a SCR-720C18 radar in a large pod and the second cockpit equipped for a radar operator. This version entered service in 1948 as a replacement for war-weary P-61 Black Widow night fighters.

By 1953, the F-82 had been removed from service, replaced by the F-84 Thunderstreak and F-94 Starfire.