North American P-51D Mustang - Part 2 - Cockpit Tour - Kermie Cam

Video from the channel Kermit Weeks Channel - Over 490 Videos to See! about North American P-51 Mustang, linked on its Above Ten Thousand entry. Duration: 19:51. Language: English. Video type: Onboard.

This is the second part of Kermit Weeks's series on his P-51D, filmed with a helmet camera in Florida. It runs from climbing onto the wing to the aircraft being ready to taxi and take off, with the pilot explaining each step of cockpit preparation.

It shows the rear jump seat, the parachute used as a cushion, the harness with its lock, and the valve that releases pressure from the hydraulic system, around 1,000 to 1,200 psi. He sets the trim: rudder 6° right, elevator slightly nose-up and ailerons neutral. He explains that each wing carries a 92-gallon tank, in addition to the 85-gallon fuselage tank. He always starts on the left engine, because carburetor overflow returns to that tank. For starting he uses the booster pump, about 5 seconds of priming, and the magnetos; the first attempt floods. He warms the engine at 800-1,000 rpm until the oil reaches about 40°. He then tests the flaps by notches, the radiator's automatic doors, and the gear warning. He finishes with the engine run-up at 30 inches of manifold pressure, the propeller cycle, and the magneto check.

Weeks explains why a Mustang parked with the gear down and the inner doors closed gives away a pilot who forgot to release the hydraulic pressure. That residual pressure could retract the gear on the ground by mistake. Releasing it drops the doors and engages a mechanical safety lock.