Ralph "Kidd" Hofer was born Ralph Kidd Halbrook on a farm near Salem, Missouri, in 1921. He loved the outdoors, animals, and sports. He drifted naturally into semi-pro football and boxing. In 1940 he won a trophy in a Golden Gloves tournament as a light heavyweight.

With his long hair and football jersey, "Kid" Hofer stands out as one of the memorable characters in the 8th USAAF. After serving in the Canadian Air Force, Hofer was transferred to the 4th FG in September 1943 and claimed his first by downing a Bf 109 on his first mission.

Hofer was known for not maintaining radio discipline, and incurred the wrath of group commander Don Blakeslee on more than one occasion. Hofer was also one of the top strafers in the Eighth Air Force with 14 confirmed enemy aircraft destroyed on the ground.

After scored his first two victories in the Thunderbolt he is usually associated with this P-51B, nicknamed Salem Representative. And while flying in his Mustang on the evening of D-Day, flying the second of two sorties, Hofer was nearly lost when a large force of German fighters jumped his squadron which was preoccupied strafing a German road convoy in Normandy.

Of the four P-51s in Blue Flight of the 334th Squadron, only Hofer escaped being shot down. Just five days later, Hofer's plane was hit by small arms fire over France, and he was forced to make an emergency landing at a temporary strip in the invasion beachhead. It was a close call, but his luck held once again and he later returned to Debden without so much as a scratch.

On July 2, 1944, Kidd finally run out of luck, when on this day when his 4th FG joined fighters from the 15th Air Force to escort bombers on a raid to Budapest, Hungary. A group of Hungarian Me 109s came up in force, A tough battle followed. In all, four P-51 Mustangs were downed on the mission. and Ralph flying as a element leader, was the last one to be shot down.

His body was recovered from the wreckage and the Red Cross ultimately notified Hofer's unit. Hofer is buried in a mass grave at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in St. Louis, Missouri.

Despite his behavior and rogue tactics he flew 74 missions with the 4th Fighter Group and scored 30.5 enemy aircraft destroyed. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross with three Oak Leaf Clusters, the Air Medal with one Oak Leaf Cluster, and the Purple Heart.

This profile is one of 90 newly made or updated P-51 Mustangs made during the last six months, a lot more will follow soon.