26 November 2009
Accessibility help
Text only

	BBC Homepage England

»	BBC Local Hampshire Things to do People & Places Nature History Religion & Ethics Arts and Culture BBC Introducing TV & Radio Sites near Hampshire Dorset Wiltshire Related BBC Sites England
	Contact Us Like this page? Send it to a friend!

Retrospective

A two seater Spitfire

Spitfire Flypast

Watch a re-enactment of the Spitfire's very first flight which took place over Southampton on Sunday 5th March, 70 years after the first test flight took place at Southampton Airport.

The re-enactment took place 70 years to the minute after the first test flight took off from Southampton Airport.

Five spitfires flew in formation along Southampton Water, providing a spectacle which may never be repeated.

Among those who took part in the event was Alex Henshaw, a former chief test pilot of the Spitfire who is now 93.

Watch the re-enactment of the test flight. >
Interview with former test pilot, Alex Henshaw. >
Audio and Video links on this page require Realplayer

Alex was a passenger in one of the few two-seater versions of the aircraft during the memorial flight.

To mark the anniversary, a special exhibition celebrating the fighter aircraft which made its first flight from Eastleigh Airport in 1936 is being staged at Eastleigh Museum.

The exhibition runs from 19th April - 27th May, Tuesdays to Fridays, 10am - 5pm and Saturday 10am - 4pm, admission is free.

last updated: 19/04/06