Robert McLean

Sir Robert McLean (3 February 1884 – 9 April 1964) was a Scottish industrialist and engineer.

He attended Edinburgh Academy and the University of Edinburgh.

He worked on railways in British India and was later Chairman of Supermarine and Director of Vickers-Armstrong.

The Spitfire was named after his nickname for his eldest daughter Annie

Vickers

As Chairman of Vickers (Aviation), he was responsible for buying Supermarine in 1928. He gave his eldest daughter born 3 July 1911 in Knutsford, later Annie Penrose, the nickname a little spitfire; which is where the Spitfire aircraft took its name from. The Spitfire had also been given to the Supermarine Type 224 in 1934.

It was not just the name that he gave to the Spitfire; with Arthur Sidgreaves he had decided to start the project that led to the Spitfire, known initially as the Supermarine Type 300. The Air Ministry placed a contract for the aircraft on 1 December 1934 for £10,000. On 3 June 1936, Supermarine received an order for 310 Spitfires for £1.25m. The Spitfire name was confirmed by the Air Ministry on 10 June 1936. The first production Spitfire K9787 flew on 15 May 1938 from Eastleigh.

He was knighted (Knight Bachelor) in 1926. He married Evelyn Noel Girard in 1908. They had two daughters, who were educated at St George's School, Edinburgh. Annie Penrose, his daughter, died aged 100 on 2 October 2011; she married the actor Robert Newton in 1936, but the marriage broke down towards the end of the war.