New Mustang in a Barn Yarn

[Ed Likes]

Someone asked what became of Jack Taft's P-400? I have a very good source that says the P-400 now belongs to Jerry Yagen of the Fighter Factory. Back around 2005 I went to Jack's place to see the P-400 and it was pretty amazing what Jack had accomplished over many years. The aircraft came out of New Guniea I believe, and Jack paid less than a $1000 for it back in the late 60's.
I wanted to do a story on Jack and the P-400, and Jack always said somday I will sit down with you to tell my story, but it didn't happen. I hope this helps out.

[daveymac82c]

As far as this P-51 story goes, I would think that there would have been some sort of record somewhere that would be able to confirm it. There's gotta be some sort of paperwork that would involve a P-51 transferring from military to civilian ownership, no?.

After WWII a large number P-51's were transferred/sold from the USAAF to the RCAF. After the RCAF was done with them, the sold them at auction to civilians. That's were a large chunk of the P-51 population comes from. I'm sure there are records for every single P-51 and whether they were scrapped or sold, and they would also have information as to the purchaser. It's a long road to take, but I'm sure every P-51 that went through the RCAF auctioning system could be accounted for.

Good luck sleuths!!!

Peace,

David M

[Randy Haskin]

As far as this P-51 story goes, I would think that there would have been some sort of record somewhere that would be able to confirm it. There's gotta be some sort of paperwork that would involve a P-51 transferring from military to civilian ownership, no? Even if it was trucked or moved in some other way. It would be really cool if the story was true, but it seems to me there would have at least been some sort of evidence that it still existed before now.

Yes, and there are dozens of "dead end" civil ownership records, so that's just not a feasible means of identification without further information.

So many US civil Mustangs have been covertly bought and sold (for example, for illegal export to South American countries and Israel during the 50s/60s), so many have crashed and had their identity transferred/re-used, so many were bought and 'eaten' by the Cavalier machine...the individual ownership histories of many civil-registered P-51s, especially those prior to the 1980s, are tangled messes. The official FAA records aren't exactly a roadmap, either. I know that there are a half dozen 'historians' who research and track Mustang histories, and even with people who have been researching a long time, and via many avenues, it's still not possible to have a 100% tie-up of the exact history of every single airframe. Trust me, if it were simply "that easy", I know of at least two or three people who would have all ready done that by now.

Remember, Mustangs weren't always considered the carefully-treated artifacts that they are today. In researching for my Cavalier book, I had one pilot tell me that during the 50s and 60s, P-51s "cost less per pound than a good steak". They were bought, sold, scrapped, parts swapped, IDs swapped, dismantled, rebuilt, all the time with little care given toward that airframe's provenance. Plus, the military didn't really care that much -- these airplanes were scrap, and they weren't really that interested in tracking exactly what aifrframe went to whom. Sometimes the airplanes were sold by the pound as scrap...they were simply metal that was in the shape of an airplane.

Go take a look at any of the published lists of P-51s, including the WIX Registry, and you'll find numerous Mustangs who have entries that end with unknown whereabouts or question marks. There are MANY of them. Even today, with how closely we in the warbird world track the whereabouts of individual airframes, new stuff pops up from time to time that has been squirreled away in a hangar or rebuilder's shop (something, for example, like the TF-51 project that Square One was building for Nathan Davis).

If, as the poster on AAFO has indicated, this particular aircraft was parked in the 1970s or earlier, it's entirely possible that it is true and simply slipped away unnoticed at a time when Mustangs weren't so limited in number and not so many people were tracking their every move and reporting it on the internet.

[Dan K]

Someone asked what became of Jack Taft's P-400? I have a very good source that says the P-400 now belongs to Jerry Yagen of the Fighter Factory. Back around 2005 I went to Jack's place to see the P-400 and it was pretty amazing what Jack had accomplished over many years. The aircraft came out of New Guniea I believe, and Jack paid less than a $1000 for it back in the late 60's.
I wanted to do a story on Jack and the P-400, and Jack always said somday I will sit down with you to tell my story, but it didn't happen. I hope this helps out.

'Twas I that asked. Thanks, Ed!

Mr. Yagen is definitely livin' the dream.

[T J Johansen]

Dick Phillips must have a cross-reference spreadsheet for paint schemes showing all the civil Mustangs that wore "baby blue with white stripy bolt thingys". If not, somebody maybe needs to photoshop create one like that, and put it on P-51 Who? on mustangsmustangs.


Oh, and T.J., why did you have to bring up the Knight P-63 again right when everybody was forgetting all about that unclaimed treasure? I was just planning my vacation, and don't like crowds.

But now you also have a former racing P-51 to search out in AR as well. Send me a postcard, will ya...

T J

[John Dupre]

Regarding the Earl Rhinehart Buffalo I have seen a reference on a Buffalo site that it was destroyed in a barn fire sometime in the 1980s and that one of Earl's relatives had only a few minor parts. It apparently did exist as he was known to have mentioned the Navy wanting it back and the old Leslie Hunt Vintage and Veteran book mentioned it and gave it a US civil N number!

What is this about an abandoned Japanese camp being discovered? Where? URL?

[avenger2504]

Regarding the Earl Rhinehart Buffalo I have seen a reference on a Buffalo site that it was destroyed in a barn fire sometime in the 1980s and that one of Earl's relatives had only a few minor parts. It apparently did exist as he was known to have mentioned the Navy wanting it back and the old Leslie Hunt Vintage and Veteran book mentioned it and gave it a US civil N number!

What is this about an abandoned Japanese camp being discovered? Where? URL?

Are they talking about this?
http://nz.news.yahoo.com/a/-/world/7360 ... ew-guinea/

As for aircraft in barn stories here in New Zealand we had a complete but dismantled (CORRECTLY dismantled too!) Airspeed Oxford! Check out this link for photos!
http://rnzaf.proboards.com/index.cgi?bo ... hread=1260

[whistlingdeath77]

how many flying p-51's are there? I thought it was over 100

[FG1D Pilot]

I'm waiting for the MAAM guys to get there 61 flying so I can get mine out of the underground bunker and ruin there day. Just don't know weither to fly it in knots or MPH and when to put on the invasion stripes.

Ober, What ever happened to the B26's that were found on the moon in the Enquirer back in about 1983. I bet the Russians got there and took them to the dark side of the moon so we couldn't see them with telescopes.

[Steve]

Regarding the Earl Rhinehart Buffalo I have seen a reference on a Buffalo site that it was destroyed in a barn fire sometime in the 1980s and that one of Earl's relatives had only a few minor parts. It apparently did exist as he was known to have mentioned the Navy wanting it back and the old Leslie Hunt Vintage and Veteran book mentioned it and gave it a US civil N number!

What is this about an abandoned Japanese camp being discovered? Where? URL?

With all the home building going on around the old Victory airfield it wouldn't suprise me if the remains were found someday. I think it was pushed in with the burned out barn.


Steve

[Obergrafeter]

There was at least one B-32 on the Moon also Doug. Now that our gubmit in all their wisdom has seen fit to end the Space program I don't think I will ever get up there to fly it.

[Speedy]

If, as the poster on AAFO has indicated, this particular aircraft was parked in the 1970s or earlier, it's entirely possible that it is true and simply slipped away unnoticed at a time when Mustangs weren't so limited in number and not so many people were tracking their every move and reporting it on the internet.

But here's my issue with the posting. The poster has said the old man told him what the paint job looked like, and that it was a former cross country racer. There is only one airplane that raced in the paint scheme described, that raced in either the Bendix races in the 40's, or the Harolds Club races from '64-'70. As pointed out eariler, that is Crosby's "Mr. Choppers"...and that airframe is Jack Hovey's RAF Mustang today.

The whole "shucks, gee whiz..." style of writing of the poster is just vague enough not to paint himself into a corner if someone challenges the story. I think it's just someone trying to be funny and get some attention.

[Towpilot]

If it's anything like the fabled '32 Ford in a barn stories, it will turn out to be a Navion or something.

Yeah, never trust those "Ford in a barn" stories! Took these pix less than a month ago in a "barn" in N Carolina. Parked in the corner behind three old airplanes. But who cares, no one here would believe me anyway!

[b29flteng]

I'm waiting for the MAAM guys to get there 61 flying so I can get mine out of the underground bunker and ruin there day. Just don't know weither to fly it in knots or MPH and when to put on the invasion stripes.

Ober, What ever happened to the B26's that were found on the moon in the Enquirer back in about 1983. I bet the Russians got there and took them to the dark side of the moon so we couldn't see them with telescopes.

Those were B-32s, not B-26s.

[Speedy]

If it's anything like the fabled '32 Ford in a barn stories, it will turn out to be a Navion or something.

Yeah, never trust those "Ford in a barn" stories! Took these pix less than a month ago in a "barn" in N Carolina. Parked in the corner behind three old airplanes. But who cares, no one here would believe me anyway!

Dude...that is NOT a Navion.............