Pat Fillingham
Pat Fillingham | |
---|---|
Born | William Patrick Ingram Fillingham 27 February 1914 Sutton Coldfield, Warwickshire, England |
Died | 17 July 2003 Dacorum, Hertfordshire, England | (aged 89)
Occupation(s) | Aeronautical Engineer and Test Pilot |
Known for | de Havilland test pilot |
William Patrick Ingram Fillingham
Early life
Fillingham was born in 1914 in Sutton Coldfield and he was educated at Worksop College and the de Havilland Aeronautical Technical School.[1] Fillingham learned to fly with the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve at Perth in Scotland, he flew his first solo in February 1937.[1] He graduated from the de Havilland technical school in 1939 as an aeronautical engineer and joined the parent company de Havilland as a test pilot.[1]
Wartime test pilot
With the start of the Second World War the company had an increase in aircraft production and by April 1940 Fillingham was test flying 150 de Havilland Tiger Moth biplane trainers a month.[1] By September 1942 he was the chief production test pilot flying new de Havilland Mosquito twin-engine light bombers.[1] In 1943 he went to the de Havilland subsidiaries in Toronto and Sydney to advise them how to test fly the Mosquito, during his stay in Canada he demonstrated the Mosquito at a number of Canadian air bases and also to the United States Army Air Force.[1] With production of the Mosquito in England increased to a five a day Fillingham flew a record 2,200 flights in the Mosquito.[1] As well as the Mosquito he also flew the twin-engined De Havilland Hornet, at the time the fastest propeller aircraft in the world.[1]
Peacetime test pilot
With the end of the war Fillingham still had plenty to do as
As the company moved into the 1950s Fillingham test flew the four-engined
Family life and leisure
Fillingham had married Sonja Couper in 1952 and they had a daughter and a son.
References
- Notes
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u "Pat Fillingham – Pilot who tested all models of the Mosquito, delivered BOAC's Comet 4s and flew China Airlines' first Tridents to Canton". Obituaries. The Times. No. 67848. London. 22 August 2003. p. 34.
- ^ Jackson 1987, p. 534
- ^ "London Gazette: 5 June 1970 Supplement:4511 Page:6396".
- Bibliography
- Jackson, A.J. (1987). De Havilland Aircraft since 1909. Putnam. ISBN 0-85177-802-X.