Mustang Designer: Edgar Schmued and the P-51

by Ray Wagner

Overview

Mustang Designer tells the story of American wartime fighter development, including engines and armaments, as part of a nationwide program of aircraft builders and fliers, focusing on Edgar Schmued, the designer of the Mustang. The P-51 Mustang is widely regarded as the best propeller-driven fighter that ever flew. What many might not realize is that the plane's developer was a German migrant. This book tells of how Schmued created a weapon that would ultimately prove lethal to the aspirations of those who had seized control over his native land.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781588344281
Publisher:	Smithsonian Institution Press
Publication date:	12/02/2014
Sold by:	Penguin Random House Publisher Services
Format:	eBook
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	926,430
File size:	23 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Aviation historian Ray Wagner is the author of American Combat Planes (1960) and North American Sabre (1963), which was the first book-length history of an Air Force fighter. A retired history teacher, he is an archivist for the San Diego Aerospace Museum.

Editorial Reviews

This is not just another book on the P-51 Mustang...Mustang Designer is the personal story of Edgar Schmued, his career, and what led up to the design of the Mustang and all its variants, as well as the story of the Mustang, itself, the most famous and successful fighter of WWII.— May 1991

In Flight

Although many "buffs" will buy it for the photos alone, this is not just another book about airplanes. To borrow Walter Vincenti's memorable phrase, it's about "what engineers know and how they know it.— Summer 1991

Air Power History

Mustang Designer: Edgar Schmued And The P-51 is the complete story behind the development and deployment of one of the most famous fighter aircraft of World War II. Beginning with the choosing of fighter designs in the formative years of 1935 to 1939 covering P-30 to P-50 craft, author Ray Wagner presents the birth of the Mustang in 1940 as designed by Ed Schmued and North American Aviation. The various incarnations and variations of the Mustang are followed up to and including the early jet age years of 1945 to 1952 and the Northrop Aviation launch of a new fighter. A highly recommended design and development history, Mustang Designer is enhanced for the aviation enthusiast and military buff with an appendix, notes, glossary, bibliography and index.

Internet Bookwatch

North American’s P-51 Mustang has consistently been regarded by many as the best propeller-driven fighter ever produced. What few people know, however, is that this exceptional plane, which protected Allied bombers and established dominance in the skies over Europe by defeating Germany’s legendary Messerschmitts and Focke-Wulfs, was designed by a self-taught German immigrant. Noted aviation historian Ray Wagner documents the professional life of Edgar Schmued, North American’s star design engineer and Mustang creator. . . Mustang fans will find little to fault in Wagner’s history. [The book] is a successful blend of engineering documentation and personal history, and aviation readers should thoroughly enjoy [it].”—Aviation Heritage

“The P-51 Mustang is a legend. Many knowledgeable observers consider it to be the premier long-range fighter of World War II, and those who have flown it call the Mustang one of the finest single-seat aircraft ever built. . . Drawing upon a wide variety of neglected sources, including original procurement and flight-test records, and especially Schmued's personal papers, Wagner has crafted a well-written and beautifully illustrated account that chronicles the Mustang's design history in rich and exacting detail.”—Air Power History

“This fascinating, well illustrated book . . . brings alive the struggles and triumphs of all [the] competing aircraft factories and their products in the World War II days. . . . The style is straightforward, livened up with reminiscences from many interviews and Schmued's own notes. . . . Ray Wagner has done a remarkable job.”—WASP News

“Mustang Designer is a milestone in aviation historical writing because the author [looks] at aircraft design in the context of its history. . . . A must for serious readers.”—Skyways

From the Publisher