VH-BOW CAC
CA-18 Mustang Mk.21
(c/n 1425)
This shot of VH-BOW by Ian
McDonell was taken at Bankstown in April 1966. It was owned
by
Fawcett
Aviation and, although assigned a registration by DCA and used as a
radio call sign, it was
never formally added to the register.
Doug Fawcett modified the Mustang for high altitude photo-
graphic survey
work and it was first test flown at Bankstown on 8 December
1961. However the
project was abandoned
and -BOW made its last test flight in March 1962. It was then
parked and
stripped for parts to
maintain Fawcett's target-tug Mustangs VH-BOY &
BOZ. It was eventually
sold to Canadian Ed
Fleming's Skyservice Aviation of Camden in 1967 and shipped "as is" to
the
USA as a restoration
project. It became N51AB, albeit with the phony P-51D
identity 44-14777
since the
FAA (in those days) would not certify foreign built ex military
aircraft. I believe that rule
has now been
waived. N51AB still flies and is named "Flying Dutchman". Curtis
Fowles has a
nice shot of it
as such at:
http://www.mustangsmustangs.com/p-51/survivors/pages/picpages/A68-100/A68-100-p25.html