Dave Ratcliffe
Dave Ratcliffe
Spitfire Pilot
About Dave
After being captivated by the Michael Caine classic ‘Battle of Britain’ at 8 years old, Rats’ career path was always going to be flying.
He joined the RAF as a pilot aged 18, where he flew the JP, Hawk and Lightning before heading for a career on helicopters.
Tours on the Westland Wessex in Northern Ireland, Hong Kong and as an instructor at Shawbury were immense fun. And they were followed by 10 years on the Chinook in Germany, UK and a few interesting detachments around the world.
Civil airline flying commenced on shorthaul with British Midland Airways/bmi British Midland International, then 20 years at Virgin Atlantic and finally retirement in 2024.
Rats has 900 hours on the Spitfire and time on the Hurricane, Me109 Buchon, Lysander and a host of other interesting aircraft. And he tells everyone how fantastic it is to be able to share the experience of flying the Spitfire.
