Tom Reilly and the team of B-25 Group achieved a milestone yesterday, January 28. The second prototype ever created of the Twin Mustang (44-83887) made its first operational flight since 1950, when it was damaged after ram jet tests. A first post-restoration flight occurred on December 31, 2018. The first prototype was salvaged at Langley AFB, Virginia and the fourth prototype was cancelled, making this XP-82 unique in the world and the sole flying XP-82.
The XP-82 (F-82 Twin Mustang) was based on the P-51 Mustang and was originally designed as a long-range escort fighter in World War II. However the war ended well before the first production units were operational.
It all started with a single fuselage and parts of the second XP-82 which were located for many years on the farm of Walter Soplata and were sold to Tom Reilly in April 2008.
North American XP-82 “Twin Mustang” 44-83887 in test flight at Muroc Army Air Base, California
At Douglas Municipal Airport in Douglas, Georgia, Tom Reilly restored the aircraft to flying condition with additional airframe parts, control components and even a left-turning engine, which was all sourced from various outskirts of the United States of America.
