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The North American P-51 Mustang
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P-51 Who?   Case # 265
44-63536     N6167U     Closed
Solved by: Koelich, Nutt, Garrett, Witherspoon, Bloom
P-51 Who 265
Case#: 265
Date: Sep 02 2003
By: Dick Phillips
Photo:
Status: Closed
Serial: 44-63536
Registry: N6167U
P-51 Who? Viewer Responses
Marc Koelich
09/03/2003 02:35
This is the Cavalier Turbo-Mustang III, a Rolls-Royce Dart 510 turboprop
fitted to a F-51D frame in 1968. The test results (and the plane?) were
sold to Piper in 1970 and were used for the Piper Enforcer project,
this time with an Allison T-55 engine.
I wonder if the same airframe was used to build N201PE or N202PE?
There is also a former Nicaraguan Mustang (44-63775) sold to MACO in
1963 and registered as N6167U, maybe the same airframe?
Randy Haskin
03/10/2004 16:06
Marc Koelich's response is the most correct so far. This is the Cavalier Turbo Mustang III. It was built up from parts into this RR Dart 510 powered prototype in '68 and given the registration N6167U.

The airplane was indeed sold to Piper in '70, and was subsequently rebuilt as the Piper PE-1 Enforcer N201PE. This aircraft is currently in non-flyable storage.

Note that this airframe is NOT one of the two PA-48 Enforcers which are currently at the USAF Museum or Edwards AFB.

Curtis Fowles
02/16/2005 00:00
Thanks everyone. This enforcer was built from a P-51D. I do not know which P-51 was used. Randy's post was the first I've heard that it was from parts, but I have no info to dispute that and Randy is doing a lot of Cavalier history. The reg. of N6167U assigned to 44-63775 has a few problems. According to one source, the MACRS for 44-63775 shows it destroyed in Hawaii in 1945 for starters.

Warbird Directory (3rd edition) shows this P-51 as Swedish but 44-63775 was not a Swedish / USAF # (Martin- please help). 44-63775 then shows up again in Nicaragua 1955 as GN 100 N6167U (reflecting a Swedish P-51), but the serial is suspect. If N6167U is a Swedish P-51 it is most likely not 44-63775. There could have been a mistake in PW, for instance, 44-63705 Fv26148 does not have a clean tie up but was sold by Sweden to Nicaragua. N6167U "44-63775" left Nicaragua for the USA but I don't know how it came to Nicaragua. So that's one issue.

The 2nd issue is that I don't believe this P-51 / enforcer became N201PE. I believe that it might have become the other Enforcer prototype N202PE which crashed in 71 (or never became anything). The reason is that N201PE is a TF model. It has the left-hand exhaust for the Lycoming T55 and has 5 hard points per wing. Records say that Piper used a P-51D and a TF-51 for their 2 enforcer conversions in 1971. The fact that this pic of N6167U is not a TF is why I think N6167U became N202PE ... OR ... there was actually another P-51D converted to the other Lycoming T55-L-9 TP at Piper which became N202PE. Granted, a TF could have been converted from N6167U, but I'm not buying that right now.

What we think we know:

Piper did take on N6167U in Nov 1970 (converted RR Dart TP with right-hand exhaust - pic above).

Piper did use a P-51D and a TF-51 for the 2 enforcer conversions.
N201PE is a TF-51
N202PE crashed in 1971
N6167U is nowhere to be found today

(The 2 production PA-48 Enforcers are not P-51s (although they look like it somewhat) so we should not confuse them with Case #265 at all.
N481PE is restored for display in Ohio.
N482PE is waiting for restoration at Edwards AFB.)


Now I would like to find a correct serial # tie up for N6167U, GN 100 if possible. I need all you experts to help with that.

Thanks and please post more info here.
Dave Chamberlin
07/27/2005 00:00
As of March 2004 one of these aircraft was still in outdoor storage at Edwards AFB just up the road from the F/A-22 CTF facility.
Ray Bazo
04/12/2012 10:14
There were four Enforcers built by Piper. The first two in Vero Beach and the second two in Lakeland, FL. The two in Lakeland were designed to take two 30 MM gatlin guns with one mounted under each wing. Dave Lawrence and Larry Lee were the pilots that flew them and completed the flight test for the USAF at Eglin. The USAF did not want anything to do with them from the start but were told to shut up and evaluate the Planes.
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