Vlado- Is this Moonbeam while part of the Texas ANG?

Warbirdnerd · **Joined:** Fri Apr 30, 2004 7:34 pm **Posts:** 2923

Looks like it to me...

Found it here:
https://www.facebook.com/OldSchoolAviat ... =3&theater

Ryan Harris · **Posted:** Wed Jul 20, 2016 2:47 pm

That is Minuteman the warbird Mustang from the '70's. It was owned here in Texas by Ed Messick at the time.

Based on the photos of this one just talked about on the old CAF photo thread here, I'd guess the paint job matches the airplane flown by the Lt. Col. it was honoring, which is how Moonbeam got mixed up with it: viewtopic.php?f=3&t=58253&start=60

http://www.mustangsmustangs.com/p-51/su ... l/44-73163

Warbirdnerd · **Joined:** Fri Apr 30, 2004 7:34 pm **Posts:** 2923

Ryan Harris wrote:

That is Minuteman the warbird Mustang from the '70's. It was owned here in Texas by Ed Messick at the time.

Based on the photos of this one just talked about on the old CAF photo thread here, I'd guess the paint job matches the airplane flown by the Lt. Col. it was honoring, which is how Moonbeam got mixed up with it: http://www.warbirdinformationexchange.o ... 3&start=60

http://www.mustangsmustangs.com/p-51/su ... l/44-73163

I thought that might be the case, but would there still have been a P-80 in Texas when Minuteman (44-73163) was in those colors? 58607 does not match the serial of any of the surviving P-80s listed on Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_ ... oting_Star

Mark Allen M · **Joined:** Fri Feb 03, 2012 1:48 pm **Posts:** 7815

Here's Ed Messick (I believe) in 1973 with N51MR

Ryan Harris · **Posted:** Wed Jul 20, 2016 4:28 pm

Warbirdnerd wrote:

Ryan Harris wrote:

That is Minuteman the warbird Mustang from the '70's. It was owned here in Texas by Ed Messick at the time.

Based on the photos of this one just talked about on the old CAF photo thread here, I'd guess the paint job matches the airplane flown by the Lt. Col. it was honoring, which is how Moonbeam got mixed up with it: viewtopic.php?f=3&t=58253&start=60

http://www.mustangsmustangs.com/p-51/su ... l/44-73163

I thought that might be the case, but would there still have been a P-80 in Texas when Minuteman (44-73163) was in those colors? 58607 does not match the serial of any of the surviving P-80s listed on Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_ ... oting_Star

Both the F-86 and F-80 are now gate guards at NAS Fort Worth. I found a photo taken last year of the F-80 and the serial number matches. Baugher doesn't list the airplane on his site, but the production batch it is in, is actually missing quite a few airframes off his list.

Warbirdnerd · **Joined:** Fri Apr 30, 2004 7:34 pm **Posts:** 2923

Mystery solved. Thanks Ryan

mlenoch · **Posted:** Thu Jul 21, 2016 12:19 am

As the previous comments said, the photo is of Ed Messick's Mustang painted to honor a TEX ANG pilot.
Curiously, he used the paint scheme of "Moonbeam's" while it was assigned to the TEX ANG in the 1950s: 44-73656.
Sidebar: Moonbeam/44-73656 starred in the movie 'Battle Hymn' along with other TEX ANG Mustangs. Another Mustang historian (Dienst?) tracked down all those participating aircraft.
V

Lynn Allen · **Posted:** Thu Jul 21, 2016 10:44 am

Mark Allen M wrote:

Here's Ed Messick (I believe) in 1973 with N51MR

Not a bad birthday gift from your wife as the story I was told back then. She surprised Ed with this Mustang...

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Vlado- Is this Moonbeam while part of the Texas ANG?

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