| Sir James Martin | |
| Birth Date: | 11 September 1893 |
| Birth Place: | Crossgar, County Down, Northern Ireland |
| Death Place: | Southlands Manor, Denham, Buckinghamshire, England, United Kingdom |
| Resting Place: | St. Mary the Virgin Churchyard, Denham, Buckinghamshire, England |
| Nationality: | British Irish |
| Known For: | Inventor of the ejector seat and founder of the Martin-Baker aircraft company |
| Occupation: | Engineer |
| Spouse: | Muriel Haines |
| Children: | 4 |
| Parents: | Thomas Martin & Sarah Coulter |
Sir James Martin (11 September 1893 – 5 January 1981) was an Irish engineer who together with Captain Valentine Baker founded the Martin-Baker aircraft company which is now a leading producer of aircraft ejection seats.
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 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]
In 2004, Martin was inducted into the International Air & Space Hall of Fame at the San Diego Air & Space Museum.[3]
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]