Jeffrey Quill facts for kids

Jeffrey Kindersley Quill, OBE, AFC, FRAeS (born February 1, 1913 – died February 20, 1996) was a brave British test pilot. He worked with the Royal Air Force and the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve during the Second World War.

Jeffrey Quill was also the second person ever to fly the famous Supermarine Spitfire airplane. He took over as the main test pilot for Vickers Aviation. He flew and tested every single version of the Spitfire. His hard work helped turn the Spitfire from a new plane into a powerful fighter. Along with the Hawker Hurricane, the Spitfire helped the Royal Air Force win the important Battle of Britain. The Spitfire later played a big part in helping the Allies control the skies over Europe. Jeffrey Quill even wrote two books about the Spitfire.

Early Life and Flying Dreams

Jeffrey Quill was born in Littlehampton, Sussex. He was the youngest of five children. He went to Lancing College, a school that looked over Shoreham aerodrome. This was a small airfield with old hangars and a flying club.

While at Lancing, Jeffrey became very interested in flying. He often watched the planes from his school. He also went to the yearly Royal Air Force (RAF) air shows at Hendon Aerodrome. By the time he left school in 1931, he knew he wanted to join the RAF.

Becoming a Pilot

When he was 18, Jeffrey Quill joined the Royal Air Force as a pilot officer. He learned to fly on Avro Tutor biplanes. He flew his first solo flight after only 5 hours and 20 minutes of training. Most pilots took about 9 hours to fly solo. His flying skills were seen as amazing.

In September 1932, he joined No. 17 Squadron RAF. Here, he started flying Bristol Bulldog fighter planes. He took part in an RAF air show in June 1933. He showed off his low-flying skills in a pretend bombing attack. He flew as much as he could to get used to the plane. He practiced aerobatics and flying in clouds. He knew how dangerous flying could be. He once wrote that pilots must practice aerobatics a lot to truly control their planes. He believed that if a pilot wasn't in charge, the plane would be, and that would be a pilot's last day.

Flying for Weather Reports

In late 1933, Jeffrey Quill moved to the RAF Meteorological Flight at RAF Duxford. He joined a small team that flew older planes called Armstrong Whitworth Siskin IIIAs. These planes had open cockpits and very basic instruments.

The team flew twice a day, every day except Sunday. They flew up to 25,000 feet to gather information. They collected data on temperature, humidity, and clouds for weather reports. When they landed, they had to send the results right away to the Met Office in London.

Jeffrey Quill took command of this flight in November 1934. He and his team managed to complete every single flight for a whole year. They flew even in very bad weather. For this brave achievement, Jeffrey Quill was given the Air Force Cross when he was just 23 years old.

Working with the Spitfire

In January 1936, Jeffrey Quill left the RAF. He joined Vickers (Aviation) Ltd as an assistant test pilot. His first job was to test the Vickers Wellesley bomber. He had a close call while flying one of these planes. The bomber would not stop spinning, so he had to bail out (parachute) from 3,000 feet. He landed safely.

Jeffrey Quill's long journey with the Spitfire began on March 26, 1936. He was 23 years old when he first flew the prototype (first version) of the fighter plane, K5054. The main test pilot, Mutt Summers, had flown it three weeks earlier. Jeffrey's main goal was to get the Spitfire ready for the RAF.

The Spitfire needed a lot of work to be safe for young RAF pilots. It didn't join squadrons until July 1938. But, it was improved many times and stayed a top fighter plane throughout the war. In 1938, Jeffrey Quill moved full-time to Vickers Supermarine. He took complete charge of testing the Spitfire. He worked closely with Joseph Smith, who became the chief designer for Supermarine in 1937.

Second World War Service

During the Second World War, Jeffrey Quill was in charge of developing and testing Spitfires at Vickers Supermarine. He felt it was important to experience combat himself. After France fell in 1940, he wanted to rejoin a fighter squadron. He convinced his bosses to let him go.

On August 5, 1940, he joined No. 65 Squadron RAF at RAF Hornchurch. On August 16, he shot down a Messerschmitt Bf 109 enemy plane. Two days later, he helped shoot down a Heinkel He 111. His time in combat was short. After only nineteen days, he was called back to test the Spitfire Mk III.

His combat experience made him even more determined to make the Spitfire better. His time in the Battle of Britain led to two important changes. First, the controls (ailerons) felt very heavy at high speeds. This was fixed by using stronger, metal-covered ailerons. Second, he pushed for better cockpit side panels for clearer vision. His concerns about seeing behind the plane led to improvements in the canopy and rear fuselage. Later in 1940, he became the chief test pilot for Vickers Armstrongs (Supermarine).

Operation Airthief

By 1942, the German Focke-Wulf Fw 190 fighter plane was very strong. It was urgent for the Allies to capture one that could still fly. For a while, Jeffrey Quill was ready to go to France to steal a Fw 190. This secret plan was called 'Operation Airthief'. Luckily, on June 23, 1942, a German pilot landed an Fw 190 by mistake at RAF Pembrey in Wales. Not long after, Jeffrey Quill flew this captured German plane himself.

Working with the Navy

In January 1943, Jeffrey Quill was given the award of Officer of the Order of the British Empire. From November 1943 to April 1944, he worked with the Fleet Air Arm (the Navy's air force). He was a lieutenant commander. He helped improve how the Supermarine Seafire (the Navy version of the Spitfire) landed on aircraft carriers. Many Seafire planes had crashed during deck landings.

Jeffrey Quill trained on the carrier HMS Ravager. Then he served on the escort carrier HMS Attacker. He flew with two Seafire squadrons. He made more than 75 deck landings during his time with the Navy. A famous naval test pilot, Eric Brown, said Jeffrey was a great choice because he could find answers to any flight problem. By the end of the war, Jeffrey Quill had personally tested every version of the Spitfire and Seafire.

After the War

After the war, Jeffrey Quill continued as a test pilot. He flew the newest Supermarine jet planes, like the Supermarine Attacker and Supermarine Swift. By 1947, he had made the first flights and managed the testing of all 52 versions of the Spitfire. The Spitfire was the only Allied fighter plane that was made and used in combat throughout the entire Second World War.

He also made the first flights of other experimental planes. These included the Dumbo, the Supermarine Spiteful, the Supermarine Seafang, and the Attacker. The Attacker, first flown on July 27, 1946, was the Royal Navy's first jet fighter.

Later, he worked as a marketing executive for the British Aircraft Corporation (BAC). He helped sell military aircraft.

After he retired, he became a writer. He wrote two books about the Spitfire: Spitfire: A Test Pilot's Story (1983) and Birth of a Legend: The Spitfire (1986).

Jeffrey Quill and his wife, Claire, retired to the Isle of Man. He became involved with an annual lecture given by the Association of Manx Pilots. This lecture later became known as the Jeffrey Quill Memorial Lecture. He was also chosen as the President of the Spitfire Society.

His Legacy

Jeffrey Quill passed away at his home in Andreas, Isle of Man, on February 20, 1996. He is buried in St Andrew's church yard. This church is near the old RAF Andreas air base, which used Spitfires from 1941 to 1942.

After Jeffrey Quill's death, a British aviation group called the Air League created a new award in his name. Since 1997, they have given out the Jeffrey Quill Medal every year. This award is for someone who has made a great effort to encourage young people in Britain to be interested in aviation.

Jeffrey Quill in Film

The film The First of the Few was released in 1942. It was known as Spitfire in the US. This British movie featured a character named "Geoffrey Crisp," played by David Niven. This character was based on Jeffrey Quill and other pilots.

On November 1–2, 1941, Jeffrey Quill flew a Spitfire Mk II at RAF Northolt. It was made to look like the first Spitfire prototype, K5054. He flew for over an hour on November 1 and for 45 minutes on November 2. He performed the amazing aerobatic flying scenes that you can see in the last 15 minutes of the film.