Eagle Squadron Mustang: Pic of the Week
Decorate your desktop with the wild supercharged Mustang alongside the Spitfire that inspired it
Such is the vastness of Goodwood Festival of Speed nowadays that some cars simply slip under the radar. It's only Friday and already the new Ariel Atom, Porsche 911 Speedster and Nissan GT-R50 almost seem like old news already. Almost.
Here's one we haven't covered yet, though: the Eagle Squadron Mustang GT. Created by Ford Performance to mark 100 years of the RAF and to be driven by Vaughn Gittin Jr., the Mustang will be sold later this month, with the money going to the Experimental Aircraft Association's youth education programmes.
There's considerable intrigue beyond the benevolence though, because this is a supercharged Mustang. It now boasts 700hp from its V8, which should be sufficient for drift ace Gittin to put on a show for the festival goers. Add to that and RTR 'Tactical Performance Suspension Package, forged wheels, wide bodykit and upgraded, heavy duty Ford Performance rear axle and it's clear this is one very special Mustang.
Not as special, however, as what the car aims to evoke. The Eagle Squadron was a group of American volunteer pilots who flew combat missions with the RAF before the US entered WWII. Hence the camo design of this Mustang, drawing on the look of those Eagle Squadron Spitfires. The result, we hope you'll agree, looks pretty damn cool.
Helpfully Ford has gone one better for the Mustang press shots, and brought the Eagle Squadron together with one of the planes that inspired it. If there's a better desktop wallpaper released this week than Mustang with Spitfire, sun setting and propeller furiously spinning, then we're yet to see it. Download and enjoy!
I was doing my work experience with the team who looked after Rolls Royce's company Spitfire (a Mk19 griffin engined reconnaissance variant), along with a privately owned Mk9 Spit (owned by a guy called Rob Lamplough) and a P51 Mustang which had been converted to be a 2 seater. John (the team leader and a friend of my old man) was in discussions at the time about being contracted to turn the box of bits into a working aircraft.
They really are as spectacular up close as they are from a distance, being stood at the wingtip of the Mk9 as it was run up to temperature is an experience i will never forget.
And I'm typing this from Texas where I drive my pickup truck!
I mean: the idea is fabulous, but the execution has been distilled a bit too strongly, I'd say
my immediate reaction was that the RAF insignia and registration lettering -- on each door -- should not be a faithful full-colour reproduction of the original
instead, I would prefer a grey half-tone (ie: one colour and barely visible)
or simply omitted in full
I forgive the design team, however, because this is simply a one-off dramatisation -- and not a design for mass production
in a sense, this car needs to be "too strong" because it's a single piece that serves as a rolling monument of sorts
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