Rolls-Royce Limited increase its own production rates. By the late 1920s, aero engines made up most of Rolls-Royce's business. Henry Royce's last design was the Merlin aero engine, which was first flown in prototype form in 1935, although he had died in 1933. This was developed from the R engine, which had powered a record-breaking Supermarine S.6B seaplane to almost in the 1931 Schneider Trophy. The Merlin was a powerful supercharged V12 engine and was fitted into many World War II aircraft: the British Hawker Hurricane, Supermarine Spitfire, de Havilland Mosquito (twin-engine), Avro Lancaster (four-engine) (a development of the Avro Manchester with
Rolls-Royce Holdings Margaret Thatcher. In 2003 ownership of Rolls-Royce plc was passed to Rolls-Royce Group plc incorporated 21 March 2003 which issued its own new shares for payment to the previous shareholders. In 2011 in the same way Rolls-Royce Group plc passed ownership on 23 May 2011 to Rolls-Royce Holdings plc a wholly new company incorporated 10 February 2011. Rolls-Royce plc remains the principal trading company. Rolls-Royce Holdings plc, like its immediate predecessor, is merely a holding company. The 1980s saw the introduction of a policy to offer an engine fitment on a much wider range of civil aircraft types, with the