Alex Henshaw
| Alex Henshaw | |
|---|---|
Alex Henshaw, c. 1941.
|
|
| Born |
7 November 1912 Peterborough, Lincolnshire, UK |
| Died | 24 February 2007 (aged 94) Newmarket, Cambridgeshire |
| Occupation | Aviator, author and businessman |
| Spouse(s) | Barbara (Dowager Countess of Châteaubrun) |
| Children | Alexander Henshaw Jr. |
| Awards |
Member of the Order of the British Empire Queen's Commendation for Brave Conduct |
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 was born in Peterborough, the eldest son of a wealthy Lincolnshire family. He was educated at King Edward VI Grammar School, Stratford-on-Avon ("Shakespeare's School" where he sat at the Bard's desk), and Lincoln School (formerly Lincoln Grammar School). He was awarded the Royal Humane Society Medal for saving the life of a boy from the River Witham.
Henshaw took to motorcycles, and then learned to fly at the Skegness and East Lincolnshire Aero Club in 1932, funded by his father, who bought him a de Havilland Gipsy Moth. Henshaw received his private pilot's licence (no. 4572) on 6 June 1932. He made a name for himself in the 1930s in air racing, competing against legendary pilots like Geoffrey de Havilland. Aged only 20, he competed in the Blue Riband of air racing, the Kings Cup, in 1933, in a Comper Swift winning the Siddeley Trophy. He also flew a Leopard Moth and an Arrow Active which caught fire while he was performing aerobatics: Henshaw bailed out safely. He later moved on to a Percival Mew Gull. He won the inaugural London-to-Isle of Man air race in 1937, and won the Kings Cup in 1938, flying at an average speed of 236.25 mph.
...
Wikipedia