The Story of the Extraordinary Mr Spitfire

Mr Spitfire

Alexander Adolphus Dumfries Henshaw, MBE (7 November 1912 – 24 February 2007) was a British air racer in the 1930s and a test pilot for Vickers Armstrong during the Second World War. Henshaw considered enlisting in the Royal Air Force at the start of the Second World War, but he instead became a test pilot for Vickers Armstrong. He subsequently took the rank of sergeant pilot to fly a fully armed Spitfire to defend the factory, if needed, although he was never called upon to fly in combat. Henshaw started with Wellingtons and Walruses at Weybridge. He did not enjoy the work, and was on the point of leaving when Jeffrey Quill invited him to test Spitfires in Southampton.