"Bald Eagle"

[Bomber_12th]

Here are some screenshots from a first roll-out/first flight in a repaint that I'm putting the finishing touches/adjustments on (for "Mustang Tales"). This of course depicts the P-51D owned/flown by Jim Beasley Jr., one of the original "Horsemen" and Heritage Flight pilots. Beasley just recently flew this aircraft from Pennsylvania, where it calls home, all the way to Davis-Monthan AFB in Arizona, to take part in the Heritage Flight Conference last week, and then flew the aircraft all the way back home - totaling 21 flight hours when all was done (including flying at the Conference). The aircraft was purchased by Jim Beasley Sr. in 1979 and it has remained in the Beasley family ever since.

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_1_zpsijh8meog.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_1_zpsijh8meog.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_2_zpsxnxznog1.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_2_zpsxnxznog1.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_3_zpsadfrviix.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_3_zpsadfrviix.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_4_zpswecah0w7.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_4_zpswecah0w7.jpg.html)

[Bomber_12th]

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_5_zpsv6phfgpx.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_5_zpsv6phfgpx.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_6_zpsqp7xjkqp.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_6_zpsqp7xjkqp.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_7_zpszj2lew7c.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_7_zpszj2lew7c.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_8_zpsfxf9hsx7.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_8_zpsfxf9hsx7.jpg.html)

[Sundog]

Nice repaint!

[WarHorse47]

Beautiful. Looking forward to this one. :adoration:

[ZsoltB]

:applause:

[g.dawg]

That is simply beautiful!

[FlameOut]

Man-O-man, that looks good ! :applause:

[Cees Donker]

I had to look twice. Thought it was the real plane at first!


:applause::applause::applause:

Cees

[txnetcop]

I had to look twice. Thought it was the real plane at first!


:applause::applause::applause:

Cees

AWESOME JOHN! Like Cees I thought it was the real thing! Super Paint!
Ted

[mal998]

John, incredible work!

[stovall]

A master piece John. Comes as close to the real thing as the real thing. :adoration:

[gman5250]

Really no words...simply stunning sir.

[Greenhouse357]

Beautiful paint, John.

[ColoKent]

Crazy small world...I believe Rich Palmer is the crew chief/head mech for that airplane back in Pennsylvania, and incredibly enough, Rich was my Flight Sergeant as a Civil Air Patrol cadet in southern California back in the 1970s!!!

Kent

[Duckie]

The first 2 shots are real, aren't they? :adoration: :encouragement: :encouragement:

[Mach3DS]

This is why I call you the master. Simply beautiful John! This is fantastic. I have a passion for the "living" aviation models. One readon why Mustang tales is such an amazing product is because it features so many model specific aircraft including VC. Which allows for such detailed and accurate representations of currently flying warbirds. Thanks for the history lesson that goes along with each of these John. I always find it enjoyable to read and be educated concurrently!

[Bomber_12th]

Thank you everyone, I appreciate it! I've settled on it/marked it as completed and have uploaded it here and to Flightsim.com.

Kent, you're absolutely correct that Rich Palmer is the one that takes care of this aircraft when on the ground - his knowledge of the P-51, from a mechanical perspective, is incredible. Before working for Jim Beasley, he was involved in warbird restorations at Fighter Rebuilders and Pacific Fighters.

Here are some more recent screenshots:

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/Bald_Eagle_2_zpsgd0hucyb.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/Bald_Eagle_2_zpsgd0hucyb.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/Bald_Eagle_3_zpsy0b8v4d9.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/Bald_Eagle_3_zpsy0b8v4d9.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/Bald_Eagle_1_zpsikue7kpb.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/Bald_Eagle_1_zpsikue7kpb.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/Bald_Eagle_4_zpsje5pfpyd.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/Bald_Eagle_4_zpsje5pfpyd.jpg.html)

[Bomber_12th]

And some Heritage Flight practice:

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/Heritage_Flight_1_zpsl0keo5gs.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/Heritage_Flight_1_zpsl0keo5gs.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/Heritage_Flight_2_zpsvqamntjm.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/Heritage_Flight_2_zpsvqamntjm.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/Heritage_Flight_3_zpsmyq04w5d.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/Heritage_Flight_3_zpsmyq04w5d.jpg.html)

[Bomber_12th]

Although in recent years, this aircraft has been most associated with current owner/pilot Jim Beasley Jr., it was his dad who purchased the aircraft back in 1978/79 (after plenty of pestering and persuading by a then very young Jim Beasley Jr.). Jim Beasley Sr. was already a pilot at the time, owning a couple GA aircraft, but wasn't really interested in WWII aircraft, but the young Jim Beasley Jr. had caught the warbird bug very early and very strong. The story goes that they flew into Cape May airport, around 1976 (when Jim Jr. would have been only 9/10 years old), and saw three Mustangs parked there, including a couple that were owned by Jack Shaver, and Jim Jr. was able to persuade his dad into asking about purchasing one - the answer was $75,000, and Jim Beasley Sr., a bit sticker-shocked (a lot of money for an aircraft at that time), decided not to do so. Then, a year later, both Jim Sr. and Jr. were back at Cape May airport and all three Mustangs were still there, and once again Jim Jr. persuaded his dad into "having to" purchase one - this time around, the price had risen to $90,000, and no go. Jump forward another year, and while passing through Texas (a detour so that the young Jim Jr. could see the CAF warbirds at Harlingen) they saw a rather rough Mustang sitting in a barn, that was registered N51JB. With his initials already in the N-number, Jim Jr. used this as further leverage to try and persuade his dad that now, more than ever, he needed to purchase this aircraft (after all, it was owned at the time by an individual by the name of Jessie Baker, and had previously been owned by Junior Burchinal, so in the eyes of Jim Beasley Jr., it was only fitting that it should continue to be in the ownership of someone with the same initials). So they met the owner, Jessie Baker, spent the night at his house, and Jim Beasley Sr. ended up purchasing the aircraft for $140,000 (with a spare engine). As Jim Beasley Jr. has said, the aircraft really was a piece of crap when it was purchased, and it literally had garden hose for fuel lines (despite the fact that the aircraft had been raced at Reno in 1970, '71, and '77). Jim Beasley Sr. had the aircraft flown to Chino, CA where it was restored over a two-year period by Unlimited Aircraft. Just to give an idea of how poor of condition the aircraft had been in, the restoration cost was a further $100,000.

The aircraft was completed in the markings of Lt. Robert Eckfeldt, of the 374th FS, 361st FG. At the time, it was widely thought that aircraft of the 361st FG had been finished with insignia blue upper surfaces, based on poor color quality wartime photos, but it has since been determined that they originally used RAF dark green - Jim Beasley Sr. thought the original wartime paint scheme looked pretty with the blue upper surfaces, as the WWII photos seemed to indicate, and that is how it was painted and will likely continue to remain as long as it is kept in the Beasley family (Jim Beasley Jr.'s son, Jimmy, has already soloed in the family's L-4, and will certainly be continuing in his father's and grandfather's footsteps).

While waiting for the Mustang to be completed, Jim Beasley Sr. purchased a T-6 for $20,000 (different times!). He had plenty of tail dragger time in a Pacer and Cub, but nothing heavy like a T-6 - he fairly much checked himself out in the T-6 and then flew it all over the country (different times!). When it came time to fly the Mustang, Jim Sr. had been flying the T-6 for about a year, and with no formal warbird training schools like there are today, he went for a ride in the back of "Bald Ealge", with Jim Maloney at the controls - they did some pattern work, landed, got out, and then Jim Sr. got in the front and just flew it (different times!). Jim Beasley Jr. soloed the T-6 at the age of 17, and then began flying the Mustang after he had about 200 hrs in the T-6 (much like his dad before him, when the time came, he jumped in the aircraft and just did it).

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/p-51_t-6_zpsdkb44du5.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/p-51_t-6_zpsdkb44du5.jpg.html)

[txnetcop]

Great info John, Thanks!
Ted

[ZsoltB]

Beautiful pictures!
How to put together a formation flight?

:applause:

[Cees Donker]

Beautiful pictures!
How to put together a formation flight?

:applause:

AirTrafficFsX?

Cees

[DaveB]

That would be my choice but I've a feeling JT uses recorder. He can put himself exactly where he needs to be in relation to the 'other' model to make those stunning screenshots.. something you're not quite in control of with ATFx.
ATB
DaveB:)

[Bomber_12th]

Yeah, I use FSRecorder for doing formation work. Sometimes it can feel laborious, while other times it can be done really quickly (depending on what you want). For instance, with the Mustang/jet screenshots, I'm still not very experienced flying formation with jets, so I knew holding position on the Mustang (that I prerecorded) was going to be a challenge, so I made the lead flight extra long (about 16 minutes - more chances for good screenshots) and kept it very stable, and with only very gentle turns and l made sure there were enough times of straight-and-level flight to make it easier in the jet to catch-up/adjust to the lead if needed. The challenge for me when it comes to flying jets in formation is the response (or lack there of) of the throttle/engine power, in which you never get as instant of a reaction to the airspeed via throttle as you do in the prop planes, which I'm far more experienced with flying formation. When it comes to flying formation with prop planes, from all of the formation flights I've done in the sim, I now can really get attached to the lead easily and hold it there through most maneuvers, changing attitudes, airspeeds, etc., with no problem, so for the Mustang/T-6 screenshot above, I just took the Mustang up for a 5-minute flight right over the airport (keeping the airpseed down to 160-mph), recorded it, and then jumped into the T-6, at the same airport, played-back the recorded Mustang flight, joined up immediately for a few minutes, and then played both recordings together to get the shot. One of the tricks I've learned from the real air-to-air photographers, when you're just trying to get some good screenshots, is to just fly circles in formation, that way you'll very efficiently get every possible angle of light. You wouldn't believe how many air-to-air photoshoots, especially in the aircraft/warbird magazines, are shot just flying in circles immediately over or near the airport they took off from, and all captured in 15 minutes or so.

Here are some more shots from the "Heritage Flight practice" (it should really be an F-16 rather than the F-35, as the F-16 is paired with the Mustang and the F-35 is paired with the P-38, but I don't have an F-16):

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_1_zps3dstsl4j.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_1_zps3dstsl4j.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_2_zpsineb7veg.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_2_zpsineb7veg.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_3_zpsoekzfv42.jpg~original

(http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_3_zpsoekzfv42.jpg.html)http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_5_zpsywlgbpaf.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_5_zpsywlgbpaf.jpg.html)

[Bomber_12th]

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_10_zps2waalyp7.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_10_zps2waalyp7.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_8_zpsh11uagas.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_8_zpsh11uagas.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_9_zpswti4te81.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_9_zpswti4te81.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_11_zpstssadcud.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_11_zpstssadcud.jpg.html)

[Bomber_12th]

BTW, former F-22 pilot/display pilot Lt. Col. Paul "Max" Moga, who is a newly minted P-51 pilot (graduated from Stallion 51 in late December), flew Beasley's Mustang yesterday (photo by Rich Palmer, via Facebook). Some of you may know him from the old AirshowBuzz videos and/or the TV shoes "Showdown Air Combat" and "Great Planes" on the Military Channel. Here he is several years ago, early into learning the AT-6: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dH2DwL7ht8k

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/10514462_10209239838698901_6483932601122104891_o_z pscbaxlzzy.jpg (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/10514462_10209239838698901_6483932601122104891_o_z pscbaxlzzy.jpg.html)

[TARPSBird]

Great paint job and absolutely beautiful polished metal texture. :encouragement:

[Bomber_12th]

Thank you TARPSBird!

In-case anyone is interested, I have uploaded an update for this repaint. The update simply corrects the bottom surface of the horizontal tail - I completely spaced and left this area bare metal in the original repaint, but the update paints this area silver along with black stripes, as it is on the real aircraft.

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/Bald_Eagle_Update_zpsxoilodxj.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/Bald_Eagle_Update_zpsxoilodxj.jpg.html)

[fuzz1]

First class work John. The only problem I experience with all these magnificent paints is choosing my favorites amongst them all.
You are indeed a master at depicting metal textures, in addition to your other obvious skills.
Keep em comin please!

[gman5250]

Downloaded and installed the update John.

I've been flying this one in P3D 3.2 for the last couple of days. With the improvements in weather rendering, color and performance fixes bringing the sim to another level of immersion, your work is the absolute benchmark for others to strive towards.

Thank you sir.

[MustangL2W]

Is it "Live," or is it "Memorex??" The Formation pictures are just incredible! Thank you for this amazing Mustang...

[Dimus]

John's threads are a pleasure for the eye as well as a wealth of information. I really enjoyed going through this one and Bald Eagle is soon going to my Mustang tales collection. Thank you again John!

[ThinkingManNeil]

Gorgeous work, John, as always! I had the chance to meet and chat with Jim Beasley Sr. at a couple of the CWH airshows at Hamilton, Ontario, back in the late 80's and early 90's; very friendly and interesting chap, and his Mustang was always a stunner...

N.

[Odie]

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_10_zps2waalyp7.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_10_zps2waalyp7.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_8_zpsh11uagas.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_8_zpsh11uagas.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_9_zpswti4te81.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_9_zpswti4te81.jpg.html)

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/Bomber_12th/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_11_zpstssadcud.jpg~original (http://s7.photobucket.com/user/Bomber_12th/media/Bomber_12th001/BE_Formation_11_zpstssadcud.jpg.html)
Hey John,
What airport scenery is that in the next to last pic? Looks very good! Thanks, Odie