I say nothing of Mustangs, but…
If you are not at all moved by the sight and sound of a merlin engined spitfire doing a classic curving approach, low pass, climb, and departing roll, then you have no soul…
Silvaire wrote:
The form of a plane is driven by function
To paraphrase Saint Exupéry: the aeroplane is beautiful because everything unnecessary has been removed and only the essence remains.
Il semble que la perfection soit atteinte non quand il n’y a plus rien à ajouter, mais quand il n’y a plus rien à retrancher. Terre de Hommes (1939)
[Perfection is finally attained not when there is no longer anything to add but when there is no longer anything to take away. Wind Sand and Stars]
Or alternatively, as the American aviators apparently said during WW2: If it’s ugly, it’s British. If it’s weird, it’s French. And if it’s ugly AND weird, it’s Russian. (Though I’m sure they made an exception for the Spitfire).
And +1 to @skydriller, the Merlin just makes a wonderful sound. There is nothing quite like it. On the other hand, the Russian radials are like flying a tractor.