A North American P-51 Mustang rests on the ramp of a desert airfield, its bare-metal skin and bold black-and-white striped wings marking it for a postwar role in air racing or exhibition flying rather than wartime combat. Ground support equipment and a numbered identification tag hanging from the landing gear reflect the practical routines of aircraft staging, whether for a military open house or a civilian air race. The Mustang, one of the most celebrated fighters of the Second World War, continued to serve in reserve, racing, and display capacities well into the Cold War era. Project: 218217