There were actually at least three incidents during World War II when a P-51 Mustang pilot landed in an open field in enemy territory to pick up a downed fellow Mustang pilot as Lt Wilson does with Gallagher. However, the cockpit area of a combat-configured P-51 has an armor plate with headrest directly behind the pilot seat and has its radio and a fuel tank behind that; in all cases in these rescue landings, one pilot had to sit in the other's lap for the two of them to take off.