A Very Unusual Air War (27 page)

MONTLY TOTAL 24 hours 40 minutes

E. Smith
S/Ldr

O/C Flying AFDU

Len with Mustang P51b in Duxford, 1943.

1 February
: Another first flight on type. The Mk X was similar in many respects to the Mk III but with a tear drop canopy. All Mustangs were a delight to fly but the Mk X was outstanding for all flying, particularly cross-country, with its wonderful all-round visibility.

2 February
: 169 Squadron was one of the first RAF units to be equipped with the Mustang P51 fighter. The Mustang's longer range meant that daylight raids with fighter cover could be extended to all of Belgium, Holland and most of northern France, up to the Rhine. Later in the year, with long-range drop tanks, Mustangs were able to escort the USAAF daylight raids right into the heart of Germany.

3 February
: I enjoyed instructing F/Lt Stubbs; he was a good pupil and very enthusiastic about flying a Spitfire. He went on to command the Fighter Affiliation Flight.

5 February
: I used up one of my nine lives when power failed just as I was about to become airborne but, luckily, I had enough room to abort the take-off and come to a stop well short of the airfield boundary. As far as I remember this was my only total engine failure in over 1,500 flights with Merlin or Griffon engines. It must have been a very minor fault as I flew EN 223 again the next day.