Five Spits re-enact maiden 1936 flight

Five Spitfires have taken part in a re-enactment of the first test flight - 70 years after the planes first took to the skies.Thousands turned up to watch as the Southampton-built fighter planes took off from the airport and flew in formation over the city.Aboard one of them was Alex Henshaw, 93, the chief test pilot during WWII.Mr Henshaw, from Newmarket, Suffolk, said he had flown his first "Spit" from Eastleigh on his birthday in 1939.Before taking off he said: "For me this is really full circle as I first flew the Spitfire from Eastleigh on my birthday in November 1939 and this is the last time I will go up in one so it's very nostalgic."

BBC NEWS | England | Hampshire | Spitfire maiden flight re-enacted