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| Signatures on this item | |
| *The value given for each signature has been calculated by us based on the historical significance and rarity of the signature. Values of many pilot signatures have risen in recent years and will likely continue to rise as they become more and more rare. | |
| Name | Info |
  Chief Test Pilot Alex Henshaw (deceased) *Signature Value : £70 | Alex Henshaw perhaps understands the Spitfire better than any other pilot - for he was Vickers Chief Test Pilot on Spitfires at the new Spitfire factory at Castle Bromwich during World War II. By the end of the war he had personally test flown a total of 2360 different Spitfires and Seafires - more than ten per cent of the entire production. It is often stated that those lucky enough to have seen Alex handle the Spitfire in flight, that it is an experience that can never be forgotten, he was acknowledged as a virtuoso in aerobatics. Alex Henshaw died 24th February 2007. |
| The Aircraft : | |
| Name | Info |
| Spitfire | Royal Air Force fighter aircraft, maximum speed for mark I Supermarine Spitfire, 362mph up to The Seafire 47 with a top speed of 452mph. maximum ceiling for Mk I 34,000feet up to 44,500 for the mark XIV. Maximum range for MK I 575 miles . up to 1475 miles for the Seafire 47. Armament for the various Marks of Spitfire. for MK I, and II . eight fixed .303 browning Machine guns, for MKs V-IX and XVI two 20mm Hispano cannons and four .303 browning machine guns. and on later Marks, six to eight Rockets under the wings or a maximum bomb load of 1,000 lbs. Designed by R J Mitchell, The proto type Spitfire first flew on the 5th March 1936. and entered service with the Royal Air Force in August 1938, with 19 squadron based and RAF Duxford. by the outbreak of World war two, there were twelve squadrons with a total of 187 spitfires, with another 83 in store. Between 1939 and 1945, a large variety of modifications and developments produced a variety of MK,s from I to XVI. The mark II came into service in late 1940, and in March 1941, the Mk,V came into service. To counter the Improvements in fighters of the Luftwaffe especially the FW190, the MK,XII was introduced with its Griffin engine. The Fleet Air Arm used the Mk,I and II and were named Seafires. By the end of production in 1948 a total of 20,351 spitfires had been made and 2408 Seafires. The most produced variant was the Spitfire Mark V, with a total of 6479 spitfires produced. The Royal Air Force kept Spitfires in front line use until April 1954. |
| Artist Details : Gerald Coulson |
| Click here for a full list of all artwork by Gerald Coulson |
 Gerald Coulson Gerald Coulson has been painting professionally for over 47 years and has a reputation that is second to none. Entirely self taught, he developed his technique to such a high standard that his work was published as fine art prints, enabling him to begin a full time painting career in 1969. Since that time his work, covering many different subjects, has been published and marketed worldwide as both open and limited edition prints. Gerald has had many one-man shows both in the UK and the USA and his work has been extensively exhibited throughout the world. A recent one man show of his in the UK attracted more than 3000 people in two days. The Fine Art Trade Guild have placed him in the top ten best selling artists no less than fifteen times - three times at number one. Coulson's passion for aircraft stems from childhood. This passion led to an apprenticeship as an aircraft engineer after which he served in the RAF as a technician and with British Airways as an engineer at Heathrow. His knowledge of aircraft engineering, combined with his drawing ability, led to him becoming a Technical Illustrator of service manuals for Civil and Military aircraft. These experiences and technical background have allowed him an insight and intimate knowledge of the aircraft he paints. Along with a unique ability to capture these aircraft on canvas this naturally led to a painting career which he has developed to successfully cover a wide variety of subjects. Following a trip to the 1991 British Grand Prix his interest in Motor racing was fuelled. His ability to capture the technical detail and a talent for painting subjects at speed meant that this was a perfect natural progression alongside his aviation work and he is now also firmly established as one of the worlds leading motor racing artists. A Vice President and founder member of the Guild of Aviation Artists he is a four times winner of the Flight International Trophy for outstanding aviation painting. He qualified for his pilots licence in 1960 and is still actively flying today - mostly vintage aircraft, and can often be seen buzzing over the Fens of Cambridgeshire in a Tiger Moth. Whatever the subject he paints, whether aviation, landscape or portrait, his unique ability to capture the realism and 'mood'of the scene is unsurpassed, making him one of the most widely collected and highly regarded artists in the world today. Between 2003 and 2008 Cranston Fine Arts purchased the remaining back catalogue prints from Gerald Coulson's previous publishers. His early prints are now very sought after and many items which we purchased are now at very low stock levels with many sold out already. At the time of writing, many are down to the last 20 or even as low as the last few prints. We only sell direct to our customers and not through other outlets, which means nearly all these prints are exclusively available direct from us. Sadly Gerald passed away on the 6th of February 2021. More about Gerald Coulson |
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This website is owned by Cranston Fine Arts. Torwood House, Torwoodhill Road, Rhu, Helensburgh, Scotland, G848LE Contact: Tel: (+44) (0) 1436 820269. Email: cranstonorders -at- outlook.com |
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Henshaw, Alex 
(signed in person)
Rose, Jack 
(signed in person)
