Work In Progress

Interesting premise, and an interesting premise is always the heart of a good WHIF for me. First thing I'd consider is "why did they not actually do this?" to which at least one answer is "fuel". A PR.XIX carries 254 gallons internally, an XIV only 109 gallons, the man difference being that all of the wing leading edge D-box on the XIX is fuel, so a PR.XIX can't have guns and ammo in the wings and still get where it needs to go. This of course also prohibits an alternative solution to the problem you postulate, which would be running an accompanying XIV escort fighter a mile in trail behind the XIX. Both the XIV and XIX could and did carry slipper tanks (90 gallons or 170 gallons for the XIX, 90 gallons or smaller I believe for the XIV). So obviously you can award your hypothetical project a version of the 170 gallon tank if you want, but to accommodate guns and ammo you still need to find some extra fuel capacity from somewhere, ideally at least 130 gallons-worth. Perhaps with additional drop tanks out under the wings, or even some kind of winged trailer-glider configuration to be jettisoned before reaching heavily defended areas. Such things were experimented with, though I can't find any pics at the moment

Not really. If you want to make one of the five Mustang X airframes, there is a High Planes limited run kit in 1/72, or in other scales you will need to undertake some scratch-building. The XP-51B nose is much closer to that of the production P-51B than that of the Mustang X

Just popping in to sign the visitor book and to correct a mis-conception which seems important. It is quite correct in general to point out that individual engines and airframes have production tolerance variations even when new, and that their variations widen as an aircraft is used and abused over its operational life. But that general case is inapplicable to this test. This was not a test of three different examples of the B-17G. It was a test of THE SAME AEROPLANE in three different conditions. It was first tested as delivered in natural metal, and then refinished for the other tests as described. This is clear from the front page of the report, as seen in the video, which names the aircraft as 42-97656, and the remainder of the report which describes the refinishing work done on the aircraft at each stage before re-testing. Those who wish to read the rest of the report may find it here http://www.wwiiaircraftperformance.org/B-17/B-17G_42-97656_Eng-47-1722-A.pdf

Why not just use Halfords white primer in the first place, that's what I do

Currently on YouTube, but almost certainly shouldn't be, so jump in quick if you want to see it

This is indeed my preference. But the other way can work well, is worth a try, and even if you don;t like the result you're no worse off, just a bit more to remove before you repaint Doggy, if you repaint instead, no, whatever you do don't try to scrub the existing paint off with thinners, it will tend to go everywhere. Sand it off gently with 600 grit or finer wet & dry, much easier to control

I have not seen any credible report of a closure plan for the LWH, meaning one based on information from someone who might actually be in a position to know. What is your source for it, and what evidence was provided?

You are thinking of the wrong film. This is the original film and is definitive as a source of accuracy https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0036152/

I prefer doing yellow tips first, as yellow over black is not easy covering, esp if you are brush painting. One easy way to do it without brush marks letting the black show through: Poke a little impression in a piece of plasticene or blu-tack or whatever, fill it with yellow paint, then and dip in each tip to the required depth (about 1.4mm in 1/72) letting it dry with the blade still hanging vertically down before you do the next one

No, that's because the starter kits are limited to a small number of paints so they simplify the painting instructions on those kits. Yellow prop tips, for sure

The way everyone's ignoring this is classic Britmodeller

If you want to do this with Tamiya paints then everything you need to know is in this thread. The underside colour you want is Sky. "Type S" is not a colour but a surface texture, S for Smooth (small particle size, not rough to the touch, but not glossy) For a potted history and debate of the origins of Sky, try this thread as a starter https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/7791-sky-type-s-whats-the-deal/

Why do you think that those are the 50 vehicles concerned?

My view is that it's not a documentary, it's a work of fiction, just like Where Eagles Dare or Kelly's Heroes.

Oh yes please!! These are really helpful, thanks for going to the trouble