Midweek Sortie 08: Edgar Schmued— “Father of the P-51 Mustang”
With a gambler’s eye for range and aerodynamic finesse, Schmued crafted an escort fighter that flourished despite rough assembly lines, punishing weather, and the relentless demands of wartime skies..
“Any damned fool can criticize, but it takes a genius to design it in the first place.”
—Edgar Schmued, Chief Designer North American Aviation
Many aviation fans know of Kelly Johnson, the man who designed the P-38 Lightning, the SR-71 Blackbird and other incredible aircraft, but few know or remember Edgar Schmued who designed arguably equally legendary aircraft. This is his story:
Picture a quiet drafting room late at night—no engines, no gunfire, just the scratch of a pencil and an engineer thinking years ahead of the war. This week’s deep dive steps behind the legend of the P-51 Mustang and into the mind of the man who shaped it, long before it ever tasted combat. Edgar Schmued didn’t chase headlines or brute force; he chased efficiency, believing that range could be as lethal as firepower and that drag was an enemy to be defeated on the drawing board. From laminar-flow wings to clever cooling tricks and fuel solutions that carried bombers to Berlin and back, this story reveals how one quiet designer changed the air war—and later the jet age itself. If you’ve ever wondered how patience, planning, and invisible aerodynamics can alter history, this is a flight worth taking.
