James Martin (engineer)

Sir James Martin (11 September 1893 – 5 January 1981) was a British engineer who together with Captain Valentine Baker founded the Martin-Baker aircraft company which is now a leading producer of aircraft ejection seats.

Sir James Martin CBE FIMechE FRAeS CEng
Martin in 1974
Born	(1893-09-11)11 September 1893 Crossgar, County Down, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
Died	5 January 1981(1981-01-05) (aged 87) Southlands Manor, Denham, Buckinghamshire, England, United Kingdom
Resting place	St. Mary the Virgin Churchyard, Denham, Buckinghamshire, England
Nationality	British
Occupation	Engineer
Known for	Inventor of the ejector seat and founder of the Martin-Baker aircraft company
Spouse	Muriel Haines
Children	4
Parent	Thomas Martin & Sarah Coulter

Life

James Martin was born 11 September 1893 in the townland of Killinchy-in-the-Woods, known locally as Killinchy Woods (birthplace on what is now called Glasswater Road), Crossgar, County Down in Northern Ireland. He established his own engineering firm in 1929.^[1]

In 1934, he and Valentine Baker formed Martin-Baker; Captain Baker took the test pilot role. It was in a crash of their third design, the MB 3, that Baker was killed.

In 1964 Martin was awarded the Gold Medal of the Royal Aero Club.^{[2][failed verification]}

In 2004, Martin was inducted into the International Air & Space Hall of Fame at the San Diego Air & Space Museum.^[3]

Northern Bank

Plaque commemorating Sir James Martin in his home town of Crossgar

Martin's contribution to engineering was commemorated by the Northern Bank in its Inventor series of banknotes, which featured his portrait on the bank's £100 note. The note was discontinued in 2013 when the bank reissued its banknotes under the new Danske Bank brand.^[4]