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Captain Eric Melrose "Winkle" Brown, CBE, DSC, AFC, Hon FRAeS (21 January 1920 – 21 February 2016) was a British Royal Navy officer and test pilot who flew 487 types of aircraft, more than anyone else in history.
- Amy Irvine
- He was at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, leading to a meeting with a German fighter ace. In 1936, Brown’s father took him to see the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin, during which Brown witnessed Hitler shaking hands with Jesse Owens.
- He rode in a ‘wall of death’ stunt – with a real lion. Having been born in Leith, near Edinburgh, Brown went on to become a student at Edinburgh University studying modern languages – with an emphasis on German.
- He was a fluent German speaker, and interrogated Himmler and Göring. In 1939, Brown was an exchange student at Schule Schloss Salem and became fluent in German.
- His fellow pilots nicknamed him ‘Winkle’ Brown received his affectionate nickname ‘Winkle’ (short for ‘Periwinkle’) from his Royal Navy colleagues, due to his short stature of 5ft 7in.
- The first jet aircraft landing on a carrier. Landing a plane on an aircraft carrier is notoriously difficult, thanks to the small size of the landing deck and lack of reference points in the landscape.
- Tested experimental Nazi planes. During the war, the Nazis developed a variety of experimental aircraft – including several powered by jets and one by a rocket.
- Survived the sinking of HMS Audacity. Brown was a member of the 802 squadron aboard the aircraft carrier HMS Audacity when the ship was torpedoed on 21 December 1941.
- A fluent German speaker who interrogated Himmler and Goering. In 1939, Brown was an exchange student at Schule Schloss Salem and became fluent in the German language.
Sep 17, 2023 · Eric ‘Winkle’ Brown is the most decorated Navy pilot in history, a phenomenal talent who flew 487 types of aircraft and even interrogated the Beast of Belsen.
Feb 22, 2016 · Eric Melrose Brown, a renowned British Navy test pilot who shattered records and made history with exploits that advanced Allied fighter power in World War II and quests for jet propulsion...
Nov 14, 2014 · Now 95, he is a hero among military pilots who fly far more safely thanks to the techniques and technologies he helped test. Flew 487 different aircraft. Imperial War Museum. Eric Brown at the...
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Feb 27, 2016 · Eric "Winkle" Brown was an experimental test pilot who flew 487 different types of aircraft, more than any pilot in history. He was also a British Royal Navy officer who landed more aircraft on carriers than anybody else in the world, a total of 2,407 landings.
