So You Wanna Fly a Warbird?
Stallion 51 featured in Flight Journal’s August 2018 issue profiling organizations that offer warbird flight experiences. (more)
Lee Lauderback and Operation Berlin Express
Air Classics November 2017 issue interviews Lee Lauderback about his cross Atlantic flight in “Berlin Express”. (more)
Across the Water-FlyPast September 2017 Berlin Express North Atlantic Crossing
Lee Lauderback and Mustang, Berlin Express 5470 mile epic journey across the US and the North Atlantic ocean to Duxford, England. (more)
A Couple of Old Horses
EAA Sport Aviation August 2017 Edition article about the magic of the Mustangs and the fun of flying with Stallion 51 flight ops. (more)
Taking That Step-Check out Training in a P-51
Dave Currie shares with “Classic Wings” readers his Mustang Check Out training with Stallion 51. (more)
Getting it Right when Things Go Wrong
Real Time- Real Life Upset Prevention and Recovery Training
Florida Training Expert, Lee Lauderback, speaks on upset training at Orlando NBAA 2016 Convention. (more)
Good Life Guide-Fly A Mustang
Cigar Aficionado Magazine discusses how to live the good life by flying a Mustang with Stallion 51. By Phil Scott (more)
Checkered Tail Mustang Pilot takes his Last Flight
Frank Bolek, WWII Mustang Pilot, flew the P-51 one last time at Stallion 51.
It is with much sadness that Gayle Bolek shared that her beloved father Frank M. Bolek passed away Friday, January 29, 2016. “He will now be flying upside down happy and content with all his WWII Checkertail buddies.” Frank and his daughter Gayle Bolek flew with Stallion 51 back in May 2009. Frank was a wonderful man, a fighter pilot to the core, was such a gentleman with a perpetual smile on his face when he would talk about his days flying the Mustang. (more)
Stallion 51’s tailored flight Experience
MUSTANG International’s Article of Stallion 51’s flight options.
Stallion 51 offers a variety of educational flight experiences from orientation flights to check out training in their dual cockpit-dual control Mustangs, T-6 and L-39. (more)
Check Out for Mustang Lovers
Flying the famous fighter with Stallion 51 Flight Ops.
August 2015 issue of Twin and Turbine magazine shares Adam Alpert’s check out training in Stallion 51’s dual cockpit-dual control P-51 Mustang. (more)
Contrails Magazine’s article about flying a Mustang
You can Fly a P-51
Long before Cessna offered the Mustang, there was another one built by North American Aviation. Here is how to strap one on at Stallion 51 Flight Ops based at the Kissimmee Gateway airport. (more)
T-6; Still Sneaky After All These Years
August 2015 AOPA PILOT article on learning to fly the T-6
Dave Hirschman gives AOPA colleague, Mark Evans a taste of flying the T-6 Texan before sending him to Stallion 51 Flight Ops for check out training with Texan expert, Steve Larmore. (more)
MUSTANG! 10 glorious hours in the cockpit!
UK’s PILOT Magazine April 2015
PILOT magazine’s Bob Davy detailed account puts the reader in the Mustang with him during his Ten-Hour P-51 check out training course with Stallion 51 Flight Operation in Kissimmee, Florida. (more)
Lee Lauderback-Mr. Mustang
FIGHTER SWEEPS’ Scott Wolff interviews Stallion 51’s “Mr. Mustang, Lee Lauderback. (more)
AOPA straps on Stallion 51’s UAT Program
Stallion 51’s UAT Program: “The Upsetting Things You Need to Know”
AOPA Pilot Magazine’s P&E (Proficiency and Efficiency) Senior Editor, Alton Marsh, straps on Stallion 51’s comprehensive UAT (Unusual Attitude Training) program. (more)
Area 51 to P-51
U2 pilot fulfills bucket list at Stallion 51
Sam Crouse, U2 Spy plane pilot, shares his “bucket list” flight with Lee Lauderback in Stallion 51’s Mustang. Great story with photos and video. Thanks for sharing Sam. http://www.samcrouse.com/area-51-p-51/ (more)
Flying Crazy Horse
Lifelong Dream comes True at Stallion 51
John MacLean shares his photos and experience flying Stallion51’s dual cockpit-dual control Mustang, Crazy Horse. (more)
Lee Lauderback Hall of Fame induction Video
Introduction of Lee Lauderback Video
Video of Lee Lauderback’s aviation accomplishments presented at the EAA Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony November 2013. (more)
Mr. Mustang-Lee Lauderback
Stallion 51’s president and CEO is honored by EAA.
Lee Lauderback, Stallion 51’s CEO and President was inducted into EAA Warbirds Hall of Fame. He attributes Stallion 51’s over 25 years of success to the team effort of his brothers and staff. (more)
Lee Lauderback inducted into EAA Warbird Hall of Fame
2013 Warbirds of America Hall of Fame Recipient
Warbirds of America has chosen Lee Lauderback as their 2013 inductee into the EAA Warbirds of America Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame recognizes individuals who have furthered the cause of EAA Warbirds of America and/or the Warbird movement. Lee Lauderback has done that and then some in his over 26 years as president of Stallion 51 Corporation in Kissimmee, Florida. (more)
Stallion 51’s Unusual Attitude training program
Stallion 51’s L-39 makes their Unusual Attitude Training as real as it gets. G-Calibration is an important part of UAT training. How can you learn to pull the stick with out also pulling the wings off? How can you show a pilot what three G’s feels like in a simulator? Stallion 51’s UAT program in their specially equipped L-39 turbojet gives real life-real time experience to pilots that can not be replicated in a simulator. www.JetUAT.com (more)
Stallion 51 share a Multi Generational Aviation Tradition
Never too young to experience your first Mustang Flight
Barron Trapp comes from a family of aviators. Barron’s grandfather was the B-29 pilot of the advance weather plane for the atomic bomb missions that ended WWII in August of 1945. The aviation gene passed down to Barron’s father David, who restores warbirds and is a graduate from Stallion 51’s comprehensive Mustang check out program. Barron took his first Mustang flight while his mother Carrie, was 6 months pregnant with him and has loved flying and airplanes every since. Barron is pictured with Stallion 51’s, Lee Lauderback next to his P-51 Mustang, “Crazy Horse 2” at Sun N Fun 2013. (more)
Stallion 51’s – Angela West is in Airshow News
Angela is an “Airshow Grunt” in high heels!
When Lee Lauderback performs at airshows around the country in one of Stallion 51’s Mustangs, his fiancee Angela West pulls the chocks before he taxis out, then climbs into the announces booth to narrate his solo demonstration and then meets him back on the ramp to marshal him in, ALL IN HIGH HEELS! (more)
Stallion 51’s Mustang Training Program
The Difference that Stallion 51 can make!
Stallion 51 makes the dream of taking control of a P-51 Mustang a reality through their comprehensive Transition Training program. (more)
“Wild Stallions”
MUSTANG magazine’s cover girl; CRAZY HORSE!
World’s leading Mustang training organization celebrates a most significant milestone. (more)
Aviator TV, season 3 premiers with Stallion 51 flight training
Stallion 51 will be sharing their historic T-6 Texan and their legendary P-51 Mustang with the world
For the season three premier, host Kurt Arnold, straps into the cockpit the T-6 Texan to experience first hand how aviation cadets learned to fly in WWII starting with advanced training in the T-6 “Pilot Maker”. The second episode Kurt advances to the greatest fighter in WWII, the P-51 Mustang featuring excellent air-to-air footage that captures the thrill of flying the Mustang. (more)
Aeroplane Monthly celebrates Stallion’s Silver Jubilee
Through the decades Stallion 51 and its iconic dual-control North American TF-51 Mustang “Crazy Horse” have become synonymous with excellence and the place to go to check off an item on your “bucket list”. (more)
Dancing with the Stars
Air-2 Air Seminar with the Legendary Moose Peterson and Stallion 51’s entire fleet. (more)
Silver Stallions
Stallion 51 Featured in August Issue of FlyPast Magazine
Stallion 51 is celebrating their 25th Anniversary, an amazing milestone for any business today much less an aviation business that specializes in rare expensive vintage aircraft built on the dream and passion of the Lauderback brothers. (more)
Stallion 51 Adds L-39 Turbojet to Aircraft Fleet For Unusual Attitude Training (UAT)
Flight Journal Online
Stallion 51 has expanded their flight operational syllabus to include an introduction to unusual attitude training utilizing their specialized L-39 Turbojet. It is an educational and exhilarating flying experience at the controls of this dual-cockpit, dual-control jet fighter that includes base-line UAT maneuvers including aerobatics. (more)
L-39 Unusual Attitudes
Jets Monthly – July 2012
Kissimmee, Florida-based Stallion 51, better known for its P-51 Mustang training, has expanded its syllabus to include an introduction to Unusual Attitude Training (UAT) utilizing the Aero L-29 Albatros. (more)
Stallion 51 Celebrates 25 Years
Air Shows (2nd Quarter)
They Say, “Do what you love,” and if there is one person who’s taken that idiom to heart, its Lee Lauderback… (more)
Twenty-Five Years of Crazy Horse
Plane & Pilot – June 2012
Stallion 51 kicked off its year-long Silver Jubilee at Sun ‘n Fun to celebrate 25 years or briningthe P-51 Mustang experience to the civilian world. (more)
The Little Witch
Warbird Digest Issue # 40
P-51D, “The Little Witch” past, present and future is described by Brad Lauderback and complimented by Paul Bowen’s stunning photography in an exclusive article and cover for Warbird Digest. (more)
Timeless Texan
February 2012 Aeroplane Monthly Magazine
Kathryn “KT” Budde-Jones relates how Lee Lauderback compared the T-6 and P-51 with a new trainer which takes its name from US aviation heritage… (more)
Flying the North American Mustang
Flying the North American P51D Mustang has been at the top of my wish list for years. I believe the Mustang is the greatest plane of the Second World War and it played a major role in liberating Europe from Fascism. (more)
Cadillac of the Skies
Lloyd’s Motor Club-Winter 2010
Ever wonder what it’s like to train as a WWII fighter pilot? Well with a little imagination it is still possible…… (more)
Whistling Dixie
Selby Burch has owned four and half Mustangs in his 81 years, and his most recent Mustang project, the Dixie Boy, is corralled at Stallion 51. In 2005, when Burch searched for a J-3 Cub to purchase in order to “teach the grandkids how to fly,” he stumbled upon the neglected Mustang he now calls Dixie Boy. After four years and 23,000 man-hours spent on the restoration the Mustang was finally ready for flight once again, and Burch has no intentions of selling this P-51 anytime soon. For more on Dixie Boy read this article. (more)
Old Trainer vs. Warbird Wannabe
Air & Space Magazine
Last March, Hawker Beechcraft flew an AT-6 Light Attack aircraft to Lee Lauderback… (more)
“Stallion 51 Offers Unusual Attitude Training in Classic Fighter”
Twin & Turbine Magazine
The NTSB recommends that air carriers and commercial operators “providing their flight crews with training in the recognition of the recovery from unusual attitudes and aircraft upsets.” Since private owners and operators of business jet aircraft come with varying amounts of experience, I’ve always believed the NTSB recommendation should apply to Part 91 operators as well as the 135 and 121 drivers. (more)
Back to Glory Days – Sons Honor Dads
Orlando Sentinel
As the warbird made its final pass overhead Thursday, two men watched, one marveling and one wishing.
For Gregory Kenny, seeing his dad back in the saddle of a P-51 Mustang heightened the admiration inspired in childhood from faint scrapbook images of the World War II ace. (more)
Today’s Pilot Magazine
It was a moment to be savoured. There I was, thundering through the sky at the controls of one of the most famous fighters ever made – North American’s immortal P-51 Mustang – and there was another P-51 in identical markings just off the starboard wing! No, I hadn’t travelled back in time – I was flying with the world’s premier P-51 flight training organisation, Stallion 51, and we’d just joined up with the company’s other TF-51. As we soared above the scattered clouds in perfect formation, with the sunlight flashing and spar-kling off the fuselage and the roar of a mighty V-12 thundering in my ears, the thought flashed across my mind – do I really get paid for doing this? (more)
“A Novice Pilot Soars, and His Doubts Fall”
New York Times
I HURTLED toward the restricted military airspace over Avon Park Air Force Range in the rear cockpit of a TF-51 Mustang named Crazy Horse, clutching the control stick. The World War II vintage instruments indicated the plane was going 300 miles an hour at an altitude of 7,500 feet, some 40 miles south of Kissimmee, Fla. (more)
“Gaining Altitude, Doubts in Tow”
New York Times
I HUNKERED in the rear cockpit of a World War II vintage airplane named Crazy Horse, my heart throbbing with awe and anxiety. I had a blue Kevlar crash helmet on my head, a boom mike in front of my lips and a parachute strapped to my back. As I stared out at the sun-drenched tarmac of Kissimmee Gateway Airport, a soft central Florida breeze bussed my cheeks. I wondered if it was the kiss of death. (more)
The Hard Way Home
Flight Magazine, Summer 1996
The dead chicken was starting to smell. After carrying it for several days, 20-year-old Lt. Bruce Carr still hadn’t decided how to cook it without the Germans catching him. But, as hungry as he was, he couldn’t bring himself to eat it. In his mind, no meat was better than raw meat, so he threw it away. Resigning himself to what appeared to be his unavoidable fate, he turned in the direction of the nearest German airfield. Even POW’s get to eat. Sometimes. And aren’t they constantly dodging from tree to tree, ditch to culvert. He was exhausted! (more)
Whistling Dixie, Jim Busha
www.warbirds-eaa.org
Let’s be honest, once in a while we all have the tendency to judge a book by its cover. A recent case in point occurred on the warbird ramp at the 2010 Sun ‘n Fun Fly-in at Lakeland, Florida, when a spit- and highly polished P-51 Mustang wandered in looking for a parking spot.
I listened to those around me surmise the pilot must be some “rich Hollywood type.” But when the canopy slowly rolled back and the pilot/owner, decked out in faded blue jeans and a well-worn T-shirt, climbed out on the wing, the looks of amazement on the faces in the crowd were priceless. What stunned them the most, however, was that the owner, Selby Burch, was already 16 years old when his P-51 Mustang Dixie Boy was built back in 1945. (more)
Every Guy’s Dream – Flying a P-51 Mustang
Entertainment Today, Brad Auerbach
Perhaps it is genetically engineered, but every guy who sees a P-51 Mustang wonders what it is like to fly in that sleek, slippery, silver plane. The muscular lines of the plane evoke the scrappy WW2 heroes of the air. I was amazed when the dream came true, that I’d be flying the plane. I am no pilot, but I love the idea of flight in all its incarnations. Whether a business trip across the country or flying a kite with my kids, up in the air is a thrill. (more)
Warbirds Worldwide
As I strapped into the dual control TF51 in the winter sunshine at Kissimmee, Florida several things flashed through my mind. My lust affair with the P-51 began in 1970 and I’ve been lucky to fly in several since. However, here we are, in the latter part of the 20th Century and I’m about to undergo the experience of a lifetime. Needless to say the beautiful form, the appropriate, purposeful, almost art deco design appeals as much to me now as it did in 1970. The North American Mustang looks right from every angle. And I was about to fly one. (more)