There are few designs that have evoked such aeronautical lust, and imitation, as the North American P-51 Mustang. Kids young and old have daydreamed of flying the Mustang, and while many have ponied up big bucks for a ride in one, few pilots have the pocket change to pick up a copy of their own. For that reason, replicas have abounded, from the Lohele 5151, the Titan T-51, the Stewart S-51 and the Thunder Mustang, respectively varying in performance from low and slow to Reno Sport Class racing.
Unveiled in 2014 as the FK51, a change of corporate ownership to ScaleWings rebranded the latest P-51 replica to the SW-51, and there’s a copy of it here at Sun ‘n Fun 2022. Powered by the 141 hp Rotax 915 IS, ScaleWings advertises a 2,200 FPM climb rate and a Vne of 216 knots.
While other replicas have varied in levels of detail, the SW-51 faithfully incorporates screw heads, rivets and panel lines—an impressive attention to detail in the all-composite kit. The Launch Edition airframe kit hit markets late in 2021, with a price of about $138,000. Options that can be added to the kit include a firewall-forward package and avionics options including Garmin G3x and Dynon HDX systems.
Enjoy more of Plane & Pilot’s Sun ‘n Fun 2022 coverage here.
