re: Is the P-51 Mustang the best looking aircraft of all time?

At first they were...their nick name hose nose came from difficulties seeing the deck and the landing signals officer. They had a large % of landing accidents so they were relegated to land based squadrons. They came up with a different landing approach for the corsair which was more of a curved turning approach rather than the more traditional straight in approach.

They were nicknamed the "Ensign Eliminator" for that very reason. That long nose hid the deck from the view of the aviator so it was difficult to have the proper angle of attack and still see. I guess they could have 'crabbed' it in a bit(flying sideways to see out the side) and kicked enough rudder at the last second to straighten her up.