Last updated at 21:04 28 February 2007

He flew more Spitfires than any other man and was hailed as the greatest test pilot of World War II.

He risked his life repeatedly to iron out dangerous problems with the RAF's aircraft, saving the lives of countless aircrew.

And he was the only pilot ever to 'roll' the massive Lancaster bomber upside-down in mid air ... just for fun.

The death of Alex Henshaw at 94 concludes a remarkable story of courage, danger, astonishing skill and devilment.

He survived numerous crashes and frequently clashed with officials who disapproved of his antics - which included bringing the centre of Birmingham to a standstill by flying his Spitfire upside-down only feet above the rooftops.

During the war years he test-flew some 3,000 Spitfires as they rolled off the production line - more than 10 per cent of all those ever built.

As recently as last year he took the controls of a Spitfire in a special flight to mark the aircraft's 70th anniversary, and appeared to have lost little of his old skill.

Born and raised in Lincolnshire, the son of a wealthy businessman, Alex Henshaw began flying as a teenager and by his mid-20s was winning aviation prizes.

In 1939, he set a record for the fastest solo return flight from Britain to South Africa in less than 80 hours, which still stands today.

When war broke out he volunteered to fly RAF fighters but was offered a job as a manufacturing test pilot before his application could be processed.

The Spitfire was already in service with the RAF by then, but as chief test pilot at Supermarine's Spitfire factory in Castle Bromwich, Birmingham, he played a vital role in developing and enhancing the legendary fighter as the war went on, as well as famous bomber aircraft including the Wellington and the Lancaster.

He later commented: 'The Spitfire didn't win the Battle of Britain, but the battle would have been lost without the Spitfire, and had the battle been lost then we would have lost the war.'

Once in a high-speed test dive he was knocked out and thrown clear of the aircraft. He regained consciousness in mid air only to find his parachute torn almost to threads - held together by a single silk strand at the edge. Astonishingly he landed safely.

In one crash, he suffered engine failure, crashed into a row of houses and ended up huddled in a crushed section of the cockpit which somehow remained intact.

Every aircraft coming off the production line had to be test flown before delivery to hard-pressed frontline units, and he would often test 20 in a day, working for 20 hours.

After the war he went into the family's farming and tourism business. He died at his home in Newmarket at the weekend. His wife Barbara died in 1996. He is survived by his son, also called Alex.

Bill Bond, founder of the Battle of Britain Memorial Society, said: 'Alex was a remarkable man - the greatest test pilot of the war.

His one regret was that he never flew in a frontline squadron during the Battle of Britain, but I don't think he would have been allowed to. His skills were too valuable.'