Two Seat Fighter Conversions

[Noha307]

One subject I have repeatedly found confusing is separating information about the wartime - either factory built or field modification - two seat fighter conversions from the modern reproductions. Frequently, no distinction is made between, say Warbird Adventures' postwar TP-40N and Fantasy of Flight's wartime TP-40N. To solve that, similar to the Warbirds Exported from Russia thread, I decided to make a list of as many examples as I was aware of:

Factory Built or Field Modification

• A6M
  
  • A6M2, 31870, field modification[1]
• Bf 109
  
  • Bf 109 G-12, Unknown (Multiple Examples)[2]
• Fw 190
  
  • Fw 190 F-8/U1, 584219, field modification[3]
  • Fw 190 S-5, Unknown (Multiple Examples)[4]
  • Fw 190 S-8, Unknown (Multiple Examples)[4]
• HA-1112
  
  • HA-1112 M4L, C.4K-112[5]
  • HA-1112 M4L, C.4K-169[6][2]
• Hurricane
  
  • Hurricane, 2-31, factory built[7]
  • Hurricane, Unknown, factory built[8]
• P-38
  
  • P-38J, 42-67762, test modification[9]
  • P-38L, 44-25237, factory built[10]
• P-39
  
  • TP-39Q, 42-19597[11]
  • TP-39Q, 42-20024[12]
  • TP-39Q, 44-3879[12]
  • TP-39Q, 44-3885[12]
  • TP-39Q, 44-3886[12]
  • TP-39Q, 44-3887[12]
  • TP-39Q, 44-3889[12]
  • TP-39Q, 44-3895[12]
  • TP-39Q, 44-3897[12]
  • TP-39Q, 44-3905[12]
  • TP-39Q, 44-3906[12]
  • TP-39Q, 44-3908[12]
  • TP-39Q, 44-3917[12]
  • TP-39Q, 44-3918[12]
• P-40
  
  • TP-40K, 42-10181, field modification[13]
  • TP-40N, 42-105927, factory built[14]
  • TP-40M, 43-5487[15]
  • TP-40N, 44-47923, factory built[16]
• P-47
  
  • P-47D, 42-8634, field modification[13]
  • P-47D, 42-75276, field modification[17]
  • TP-47G, 42-25266, factory built[18]
  • TP-47G, 42-25267, factory built[18]
• P-51
  
  • P-51B, 42-106703, field modification[19]
  • P-51B, 42-106894, field modification[20]
  • P-51B, 43-6593, field modification[21]
  • P-51B, 43-6688, field modification[15]
  • P-51B, 43-6787, field modification[22]
  • P-51B, 43-6865, field modification[23]
  • P-51B, 43-6877, field modification[24]
  • P-51B, 43-6928, field modification[25]
  • P-51B, 43-12193, field modification[26]
  • P-51B, 43-12478, field modification[27]
  • P-51D, 44-13885, field modification[19]
  • P-51D, 44-72210, field modification[28]
  • TP-51D, 44-63472, factory built[29]
  • TP-51D, 44-84610, factory built[29]
  • TP-51D, 44-84611, factory built[29]
  • TP-51D, 45-11443, factory built[29]
  • TP-51D, 45-11444, factory built[29]
  • TP-51D, 45-11445, factory built[29]
  • TP-51D, 45-11446, factory built[29]
  • TP-51D, 45-11447, factory built[29]
  • TP-51D, 45-11448, factory built[29]
  • TP-51D, 45-11449, factory built[29]
  • TP-51D, 45-11450, factory built[29]
  • TP-51D, 44-84654, factory built[29]
  • TP-51D, 44-84655, factory built[29]
  • TP-51D, 44-84656, factory built[29]
  • TP-51D, 44-84657, factory built[29]
  • TP-51D, 44-84658, factory built[29]
• P-59
  
  • YP-59, 42-108777, test modification[30]
• P-63
  
  • P-63A, 42-69304, field modification[9]
  • P-63A, 42-70503, field modification[9]
  • P-63C, 43-11334, field modification[15]
  • P-63E, 43-11728, test modification[30][31]
  • P-63E, 43-11734, test modification[32][33]
• Spitfire
  
  • Spitfire V, ES127, factory built[34]
  • Spitfire VIII, MT818, factory built[34]
  • Spitfire T.9, MJ627, factory built[35]
  • Spitfire T.9, ML407, factory built[36]

Modern Reproductions

• A6M3, Replica (3852)[37]
• Hurricane, BE505[38][39]
• TP-40N, 42-104977[40][41]
• TP-51C, 42-103293[42]
• TF-51D, 44-84655[43][44]

A few notes:

• Further distinctions can be made between:
  
  • Aircraft with dual controls and those with only a single set.
  • Aircraft originally built as two seaters and those rebuilt/remanufactured later.
    
    • Of the latter category above, aircraft rebuilt by the original manufacturer and those rebuilt by a different company.
  • Aircraft built/rebuilt during wartime and aircraft built/rebuilt postwar by the original manufacturer (e.g. MT818).
• There are a few examples I have elected not to list above as they would make the list excessively long, they are somewhat different in origin, or I have not had sufficient time to research them:
  
  • The P-38M was created by adding a second seat for a radar observer.[45]
  • P-38 droop snoot conversions
• A third "test modification" category was used for aircraft that were converted for used in experimental testing, as they did not leave the factory in that configuration, but also did not seem to fit the "field modification" category as they did not serve with operational or training units.
• I have my suspicions that Cavalier's original name, "Trans Florida Aviation", was intended to allow them to claim that "TF" was just an abbreviation. This would be similar to FlugWerk reportedly naming themselves as such to be able to build "FW"-190s. (Source: B. “Putt” Riddle, “Building New Fw-190s,” Warbirds, March 2005, 17.)
• The 1947 conversion from "P" for pursuit to "F" for fighter, is a further source of confusion. The fact that manuals with this designation exist proves that it was official, but further use to refer to civilian examples makes the situation murky.[46]
• Similarly, it is unclear whether some of the World War II American "TP" designations (e.g. TP-39) were official or just assumptions made years later.
• TF-51D, 44-84655 is described as being written off as a "hulk" in 1968. However, I don't want to get into the whole "data plate restoration" debate here.
• The Soviets did some conversions of Spitfires, P-39s and likely others. However, given there is essentially no information on aircraft identities, I've elected to just ignore these.
• Lastly, a short history of the two seat P-51s pulled from FlyPast:
  

  During World War Two there wasn’t a trainer version of the Mustang at all; however, after the war, the Air Force decided to modify a number of the P-51s it had, to use them as trainers. The justification for this move, Lee Lauderback tells me, probably stemmed from the fact that the United States lost more Mustangs in training than it did in combat. The trainers were meant to augment the instruction that the T-6 Texan offered and not replace it. Certainly the airworthiness of the aircraft and the design had stood the test of time and the 1,400 hp Merlin engine would offer new challenges and experiences for the student pilots. The programme was one of those good ideas that ran out of time and into the jet age. Nevertheless, before the project was abandoned, nine or ten P-51s had been converted from ‘D’ model fuselages right off the production line.
  
  Those aircraft were so successful that the Air Force contracted for 15 additional trainers from the LTV Corporation. Of these, about ten were built. The latter group comprise what were called TEMCO conversions and of the total of P-51s converted, only one TEMCO aircraft remains. It is still operational and is owned by John McGuire of El Paso, Texas. (44-84658/N51TF Friendly Ghost))
  
  The Cavalier Aircraft Corporation got into the conversion business too and made a full TF-51 modification for Bolivia and at least two additional aircraft for the Dominican Republic. However, there were also any number of field conversions carried out in Europe during World War Two and after which were anything but standard, most of these were two-seat rather than dual control[.] A few pictures remain[,] but the aircraft no longer exist.

  
  (Source: Leslie Hicks, “Crazy Horse,” FlyPast, November 1997, 79–80.)

I'm sure I missed some or made some mistakes, so please feel free to make suggestions.

[LegendaryWings]

Here are more two seat Spitfires:
Factory conversions: MJ772, PV202, ML417 (has been restored back to single seater), TE308
Modern conversions: BS410, MH367, ML295, NH341, PT462, SM520

TF-51D Mustangs (modern conversions): 44-63865 (Tempus Fugit), 44-72922 (Scat VII), 44-63473 (Big Beautiful Doll), 44-12858 (Tiger's Revenge), 44-84847 (Contrary Mary), 44-73871 (Double Trouble Two (N551TF), 45-11518 (former Janie, rebuild recently completed), 44-74978, 44-84860 (Lady Jo), 45-11471 (Diamondback), 44-73142, 44-74497 (Little Witch), 44-74502 (Crazy Horse 2), 44-84745 (Crazy Horse)

Sea Fury T.20 (a type not on your list): VX281, VX300, VX302, VZ345, VZ351, VZ365, VZ368, WE820, WG652, WG655

[Randy Haskin]

The discussion of the TP-51s and TF-51s from FlyPast is only loosely correct.

NAA TP-51s:
North American Aviation produced 10 "TP-51-25NT" airframes, modified D-models in '44/'45. The fuselage fuel tank was removed and the radio gear was relocated. A rear seat with full dual-controls was added, but the rear seat only featured rudimentary cockpit instrumentation. Unlike the later TEMCO TF-51Ds, these airframes used a standard P-51D/K canopy and did not have a redesigned aft fuselage area.
44-84610
44-84611
45-11443
45-11444
45-11445
45-11446
45-11447
45-11448
45-11449
45-11450

TEMCO TF-51s:
The USAF contracted with the Texas Engineering and Manufacturing Company (TEMCO) to modify 15 1944-model P-51Ds into dual control trainers. The designation of these aircraft was TF-51D, reflecting the change in designation of “Pursuit” aircraft to “Fighter” aircraft in 1948. Unlike the NAA TP-51Ds, the TEMCO TF-51Ds featured a more significant design change, incorporating a modified aft fuselage and an enlarged canopy. This allowed for a fully instrumented rear cockpit and headroom for the rear-seat pilot.

Many of these TEMCO TFs served with the ANG and later the Republic of Korea Air Force. One of these TEMCO TFs (SN 658) was later re-used as a template for Cavalier Aircraft Corporation's TF-51s.

44-84654
44-84655 Now "Tolouse Nuts"
44-84656
44-84657
44-84658 Now "Friendly Ghost"
44-84660
44-84662
44-84663
44-84665
44-84666
44-84667
44-84668
44-84669
44-84670
44-84676

Cavalier TF-51s:
Cavalier Aircraft Corporation built seven* Cavalier TF-51Ds in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These aircraft did not officially serve with the US Air Force, but were constructed as trainers for countries who had been given Cavalier-modified Mustangs as military aid from the United States. The Cavalier TF-51Ds were very similar to the TEMCO design, but added features like a taller vertical stabilizer and numerous minor structural, mechanical, and cockpit improvements. Cavalier constructed their TF-51Ds out of surplus single-seat P-51D and P-51K airframes, but at least one was built from a former TEMCO fuselage (Not SN 658) and re-serial numbered (for the Bolivia contract). Due to the circumstances under which the Cavalier TF-51Ds were purchased, some of them received new USAF serials when rebuilt and some did not.

*NOTE: The 1972-serial number airframe was built after the closing of Cavalier by an affiliated follow-on company called "Field Services", although it was constructed to the Cavalier TF-51 production spec. So...technically there are eight Cavalier TFs produced.
NOTE 2: Both of the original Piper Enforcer airframes (N201PE and N202PE) used the Cavalier TF-51 cockpit layout. N201PE was originally built as a single-seater, but later modded into a full dual control airframe and N202PE was a dual control trainer from the start. I don't include them in this list, although the surviving original airframe, N201PE, is listed in my summary chart at the bottom of this post. So...that kind of makes 10 total Cavalier TF-51s, depending on how you look at it.

44-63492 El Salvador, FAS 400, 1968
44-73260 Indonesia, AURI F360, 1969/1971
44-84658 Indonesia, AURI F361, 1971. Now "Friendly Ghost"
44-84745 Built for Cavalier/Lindsay Family 1971-1982 Now "Crazy Horse"
67-14866 Bolivia, FAB 521, 1967. Now "Bum Steer".
67-22582 Bolivia, FAB 522, 1968
69-6599 Dominican Republic, FAD 1923#2, 1968
72-1536 Indonesia, AURI F366, 1973

Civilian/Warbird Conversion TF-51s:
There have been numerous P-51s that have added dual controls over the span of civilian ownership and operation of Mustangs. Those modified airframes are too numerous to list, and don't follow a single pattern of installation.

This is a list of dual control conversions have been constructed using essentially the same general configuration and dimensions as the TEMCO and Cavalier conversions. At the bottom of the list is the TP-51C built by Pacific Fighters that is not of the typical "TF-51D" design, but is fully dual control.
44-12858
44-63473
44-63865
44-72922
44-73142
44-73458
44-73871
44-74497
44-74502
44-74839 (adopted)
44-84847
44-84860
45-11471
45-11559 (adopted)
44-74978
42-103293

Here is a mostly-inclusive spreadsheet of the current state of warbird TF-51s (and the one TP-51C...which is in a class of its own).

Attachments

Last edited by Randy Haskin on Mon Aug 14, 2023 10:31 pm, edited 4 times in total.

[Randy Haskin]

[*]I have my suspicions that Cavalier's original name, "Trans Florida Aviation", was intended to allow them to claim that "TF" was just an abbreviation. This would be similar to FlugWerk reportedly naming themselves as such to be able to build "FW"-190s. (Source: B. “Putt” Riddle, “Building New Fw-190s,” Warbirds, March 2005, 17.)

That company name was picked long before Dave Lindsay ever even owned a TF-51 or had any plans to construct their own aircraft at all, much less dual control TF-51s. The company was named in 1957, Lindsay purchased the company's TEMCO TF-51 in 1961, and Cavalier produced their first in-house TF-51 in 1967.

By the time they did construct the Cavalier TF-51s, they were re-named Cavalier Aircraft Corporation and already owned the Type Certificate and rights to construct new Mustangs, regardless.

[Firebird]

[*]Hurricane

• Hurricane, 2-31, factory built[7]
• Hurricane, Unknown, factory built[8]

Iran Hurricane 2-seater 2-31 was converted from ex-RAF Hurricane KZ232, and flew as a 2-seater for the first time at Hawker's Langley factory on 27th Sept 1946.

[Warbirdnerd]

Isn't Bob Pond's 44-7084 a factory built TP-40N?

[Zac Yates]

P-40N-1 42-104730 has some form of dual controls fitted as seen in this video.

[Dan K]

Perhaps this might be of interest?

https://massimotessitori.altervista.org ... ricane.htm

https://www.americanairmuseum.com/archi ... raft/bp654


Conflicting somewhat with the above, this list suggests possible IDs for the three Hurricanes assigned to the 350th FG were LB560, LB595, and LB597 (Or were there more than three?). See the entries for October 31 and November 12 of 1943.

Additional intrigue for the entry for January 23, 1944:

http://raf-112-squadron.org/350thfghonor_roll.html

[Fred41]

The discussion of the TP-51s and TF-51s from FlyPast is only loosely correct.

NAA TP-51s:
North American Aviation produced 10 "TP-51-25NT" airframes, modified D-models in '44/'45. The fuselage fuel tank was removed and the radio gear was relocated. A rear seat with full dual-controls was added, but the rear seat only featured rudimentary cockpit instrumentation. Unlike the later TEMCO TF-51Ds, these airframes used a standard P-51D/K canopy and did not have a redesigned aft fuselage area.
44-84610
44-84611
45-11443
45-11444
45-11445
45-11446
45-11447
45-11448
45-11449
45-11450

TEMCO TF-51s:
The USAF contracted with the Texas Engineering and Manufacturing Company (TEMCO) to modify 15 1944-model P-51Ds into dual control trainers. The designation of these aircraft was TF-51D, reflecting the change in designation of “Pursuit” aircraft to “Fighter” aircraft in 1948. Unlike the NAA TP-51Ds, the TEMCO TF-51Ds featured a more significant design change, incorporating a modified aft fuselage and an enlarged canopy. This allowed for a fully instrumented rear cockpit and headroom for the rear-seat pilot.

Many of these TEMCO TFs served with the ANG and later the Republic of Korea Air Force. One of these TEMCO TFs (SN 658) was later re-used as a template for Cavalier Aircraft Corporation's TF-51s.

44-84654
44-84655 Now "Tolouse Nuts"
44-84656
44-84657
44-84658 Now "Friendly Ghost"
44-84660
44-84662
44-84663
44-84665
44-84666
44-84667
44-84668
44-84669
44-84670
44-84676

Cavalier TF-51s:
Cavalier Aircraft Corporation built seven* Cavalier TF-51Ds in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These aircraft did not officially serve with the US Air Force, but were constructed as trainers for countries who had been given Cavalier-modified Mustangs as military aid from the United States. The Cavalier TF-51Ds were very similar to the TEMCO design, but added features like a taller vertical stabilizer and numerous minor structural, mechanical, and cockpit improvements. Cavalier constructed their TF-51Ds out of surplus single-seat P-51D and P-51K airframes, but at least one was built from a former TEMCO fuselage (Not SN 658) and re-serial numbered (for the Bolivia contract). Due to the circumstances under which the Cavalier TF-51Ds were purchased, some of them received new USAF serials when rebuilt and some did not.

*NOTE: The 1972-serial number airframe was built after the closing of Cavalier by an affiliated follow-on company called "Field Services", although it was constructed to the Cavalier TF-51 production spec. So...technically there are eight Cavalier TFs produced.
NOTE 2: Both of the original Piper Enforcer airframes (N201PE and N202PE) used the Cavalier TF-51 cockpit layout. N201PE was originally built as a single-seater, but later modded into a full dual control airframe and N202PE was a dual control trainer from the start. I don't include them in this list, although the surviving original airframe, N201PE, is listed in my summary chart at the bottom of this post. So...that kind of makes 10 total Cavalier TF-51s, depending on how you look at it.

44-63492 El Salvador, FAS 400, 1968
44-73260 Indonesia, AURI F360, 1969/1971
44-84658 Indonesia, AURI F361, 1971. Now "Friendly Ghost"
44-84745 Built for Cavalier/Lindsay Family 1971-1982 Now "Crazy Horse"
67-14866 Bolivia, FAB 521, 1967. Now "Bum Steer".
67-22582 Bolivia, FAB 522, 1968
69-6599 Dominican Republic, FAD 1923#2, 1968
72-1536 Indonesia, AURI F366, 1973

Civilian/Warbird Conversion TF-51s:
There have been numerous P-51s that have added dual controls over the span of civilian ownership and operation of Mustangs. Those modified airframes are too numerous to list, and don't follow a single pattern of installation.

This is a list of dual control conversions have been constructed using essentially the same general configuration and dimensions as the TEMCO and Cavalier conversions. At the bottom of the list is the TP-51C built by Pacific Fighters that is not of the typical "TF-51D" design, but is fully dual control.
44-12858
44-63473
44-63865
44-72922
44-73142
44-73458
44-73871
44-74497
44-74502
44-74839 (adopted)
44-84847
44-84860
45-11471
45-11559 (adopted)
44-74978
42-103293

Here is a mostly-inclusive spreadsheet of the current state of warbird TF-51s (and the one TP-51C...which is in a class of its own).

Have the latest TF-51s manufactured or converted by Cavalier or Temco been certified for civilian/commercial use? Thx !

[Lon Moer]

This one was modified by the FAS, but rebuilt as a TF by Gordon Plaskett (King City, CA) from parts/pieces that came from Cavalier when Plaskett bought the remains of the company.

[Randy Haskin]

This one was modified by the FAS, but rebuilt as a TF by Gordon Plaskett (King City, CA) from parts/pieces that came from Cavalier when Plaskett bought the remains of the company.

ScreenShot_20230819102719.jpeg

The point-by-point history of that airframe is almost too complicated to even categorize, but I list it as a Cavalier for simplicity's sake.

The current owner is a fellow FedEx pilot, and this is what I wrote him in an attempt to summarize the early history of the airplane even before Plaskett.

The FAS 400 takeoff accident had nearly destroyed the aircraft. In most circumstances, an airframe with that level of damage would be scrapped, but given the FAS’ need for a viable dual control trainer, their limited resources, and their ingenuity, the TF-51 was eventually rebuilt in El Salvador. The specifics about this rebuild are muddy, and made even more confusing by published reports by reputable sources that don’t seem to match other known facts.

The basic understanding is that a team of FAS mechanics, led by Archie Baldocchi (someone worthy of a book about him in his own right) pieced together parts of at least two, and possibly even three, P-51s to rebuild the TF-51. The photo taken of the FAS 400 wreckage (incorrectly labeled with Bolaños and Lobo as the pilots, who were actually the crew of FAS 402 when it crashed in Oct 1968) shows that the dual-control “TF” cockpit section of FAS 400, which was still easily salvageable following the accident, was the starting point. From there, a stock P-51 airframe (44-73458) that had been illegally smuggled into El Salvador during or shortly after the Soccer War was torn down and sacrificed to provide essentially the rest of the airframe. Additionally, the wreckage of Cavalier FAS 402, destroyed during a similar accident on takeoff back in 1968, may have provided further parts to the rebuild.

The reconstructed TF-51 was given the ID FAS 404 (and is referred to by historians as FAS 402#2). The assignment of this identity (instead of the original ID of FAS 400) has caused substantial confusion over the years. For one, it has caused the new TF-51 to be confused with the Cavalier Mustang II that had been originally called FAS 404. One of the most-referenced books on this topic claimed that FAS 404 was the “donor airframe” whose parts were used in the TF-51 rebuild, and that the “legacy” serial number of Cavalier FAS 404 was 44-73458, hence the reason that serial number was associated with the rebuilt TF-51.

Unfortunately, both of these points are wrong. The original FAS 404 was shot down during the Soccer War (the last combat kill on a piston-engined fighter by a piston-engined fighter!) and photos of the wreckage show that it was completely destroyed in the crash (photo of the FAS 404 wreckage to the left of this text). Additionally, as was described earlier, Cavalier did not keep any of the “legacy” serial numbers with the FAS aircraft when they were built, and there is no way anyone in El Salvador would have known what parts were used to construct FAS 404 (and, in fact, we still don’t even know those details today!). It is likely that this explanation originated with the rebuilt TF-51’s ID of FAS 404. In the years since, FAS historians have theorized that the new TF was given the ID of 404 to cover up that the original 404 had been shot down in the war. Additionally no explanation was ever provided about the disposition of the wreckage of FAS 402…and those same historians now believe it was 402’s wreck that was used for additional parts in the rebuild. Finally, we also now know (and did not know at the time) that 44-73458 was the serial number of one of the Mustangs illegally purchased by the FAS, and that it was the main parts donor for the TF-51 reconstruction.

The rebuild has been as an impressive feat for a small group of technicians to accomplish in field conditions with only limited means, but it was far from a “perfect” reconstruction of a TF-51. The use of a stock P-51 in the rebuild meant that FAS 404#2 was more “Mustang” than “Cavalier Mustang”. It did keep the functionality of control and instrumentation in both cockpits, but not all of the features made the transition – for example, the provision to raise and lower the gear was not reinstalled in the rear cockpit for unknown reasons. The new wings were “stock” Mustang, without the hardpoints or tip tanks, and the distinctive tall Cavalier vertical stabilizer was now gone.

[Randy Haskin]

Have the latest TF-51s manufactured or converted by Cavalier or Temco been certified for civilian/commercial use? Thx !

None of the aircraft have been in Standard category, no.

[Lon Moer]

This one was modified by the FAS, but rebuilt as a TF by Gordon Plaskett (King City, CA) from parts/pieces that came from Cavalier when Plaskett bought the remains of the company.

ScreenShot_20230819102719.jpeg

The point-by-point history of that airframe is almost too complicated to even categorize, but I list it as a Cavalier for simplicity's sake.

The current owner is a fellow FedEx pilot, and this is what I wrote him in an attempt to summarize the early history of the airplane even before Plaskett.
<>

If only there were a BOOK that had all this information in it...........