Eric 'Winkle" Brown | His Best & Worst Aircraft

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  • Опубликовано: 27 май 2023
  • Eric 'Winkle' Brown - nicknamed Winkle as he was just 5ft 7in tall (170cm) - flew 487 different aircraft in his time as a Fleet Air Arm combat pilot and Royal Aircraft Establishment test pilot. And that number only counts the basic aircraft type - not their modifications or variants.
    He completed 2407 deck landings, flew under all conditions, and pushed every aircraft he flew to - and beyond - its limits.
    In that time he developed opinions on the best and worst aircraft of World War II and who the most effective aeronautical designers and engineers were. But he also knew - resolutely - what his most (and least) favourite aircraft were to fly
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Комментарии • 246

  • @glenmoss02
    @glenmoss02 11 месяцев назад +81

    You can't really find a better authority with hands-on experience regarding WWII aircraft than the late, great Winkle Brown.

  • @keithscott1255
    @keithscott1255 11 месяцев назад +192

    Gentleman, scholar, Aviator. One of the greatest Scotsmen of the twentieth century.

    • @MrRugbylane
      @MrRugbylane 11 месяцев назад +9

      Yes.

    • @AudieHolland
      @AudieHolland 11 месяцев назад +14

      He passed away in 2016, at the age of 97.

    • @MartinMcAvoy
      @MartinMcAvoy 11 месяцев назад +11

      Scotland has a population about the same as Uganda. No offence to Ugandans, it is just a numbers comparison but for a tiny number of people, I don't think any nation has had such an impact on the world. Everybody has heard of them. 'Weel done, cutty-sark!'

    • @mothmagic1
      @mothmagic1 11 месяцев назад +16

      I was privileged to meet this great man. An absolute gentleman and a joy to talk to.

    • @MartinMcAvoy
      @MartinMcAvoy 11 месяцев назад +14

      @@mothmagic1 Well done mate. Chuck Yeager was good, so was Neil Armstrong but Captain Brown landed a Mosquito on an aircraft carrier. The fastest speed for deck landing was 86 knots, while the aircraft's stall speed was 110 knots 😲

  • @B-A-L
    @B-A-L 11 месяцев назад +26

    Still think it's a national disgrace that Eric 'Winkle' Brown was never knighted for his services to aviation.

    • @Hartley_Hare
      @Hartley_Hare Месяц назад

      They only knight people who have a hugely dubious history. Decent people don't stand a chance.

  • @DONALDSON51
    @DONALDSON51 11 месяцев назад +69

    These days there are not many records you can say categorically will never be beaten but his number of aircraft types flown will never be beaten

    • @jaws666
      @jaws666 11 месяцев назад +5

      Its right up there with the R.A.F. "Black Arrows' 1958 Farnborough airshow were they looped 22 Hawker hunters in formation...will never bebeaten

    • @WarblesOnALot
      @WarblesOnALot 11 месяцев назад

      @@jaws666
      G'day,
      There's a lot of such Records out there.
      Never again will anybody take a whole Squadron of Dive Bombers and take them vertically down into a Low Overcast and, in formation, emerge to punch 11 out of the twelve of them straight into the Ground, in front of a Reviewing Stand of Brass-Hats, Generals and Beaurocrats - all assembled to witness what a
      Glorious
      Wunder Waffle,
      Was durr Ju -87
      StewKaaarrgh.
      And, on another front,
      Nobody will ever
      Repeat
      The feat
      Of the US Navy having shot down
      60
      US Army Air Force
      C-47 Troop Transports
      Carrying an entire
      Parachute Infantry Regiment,
      Attempting to
      Jump into
      Crete,
      Or was it
      Anzio
      With disasterous fcukups like these...,
      Forgetting comes quickly, as nobody wants to
      Know...
      Erich Hartmann's Aerial
      Kill-Tally...,
      Either.
      Because
      No Nation
      Or individual will ever spend several years -
      Putting
      353 Aeroplanes
      Up into the Sky..., for any
      Possible contending
      Challenger
      To attempt to destroy in their effort to
      Beat
      Hartmann's
      Hunting
      Bag-Limit...
      And,
      In light of
      Anthropogenic Global Warming...,
      Only a wildly
      Selfish
      Arsehole
      Would KNOWINGLY
      Now
      Set out to either
      Fly more different
      Types of Hairygoplane than Eric Brown did...; or destroy more Flying Machines while levitating than Hartmann turned into Scrap (367, counting the ones he crashed, and the one he bailed out of...!).
      I wouldn't want the personal Responsibility for Atmospheric Fossil Carbon Emissions of EITHER of them..., to be honest ; though at least Hartmann learned to fly in a Glider with his mother the Soaring Instructor - whereas Brown had his first Flying Lesson from Ernst Udet.
      Times have
      Changed.
      Henceforth,
      Scurrilous Villains and Scumbags will be
      Vilified...
      Based on their
      Known personal
      Total Atmospheric Emissions of Fossil Carbon.
      The more
      ANYBODY
      Shits in the Sky...
      The
      Worse a
      Human
      They prove themself to be.
      Regardless of their
      Rationalisation and
      Denial
      (the two most Pathological Ego Defence Mechanisms listed within the Psychiatric Textbook, as they be...).
      Just(ifiably ?) sayin'
      Ain't goanna
      Glorify
      War
      No
      More.
      Nor the Idiots
      Who
      Do so.
      ;-p
      Ciao !

    • @mothmagic1
      @mothmagic1 11 месяцев назад +8

      Even more unlikely when you consider that he recorded spitfires and seafires as a single type

    • @wyverncoch4430
      @wyverncoch4430 11 месяцев назад +7

      Or number of carrier landings, including many firsts

    • @alganhar1
      @alganhar1 11 месяцев назад +4

      @@mothmagic1 Does not matter which way you count it. If you count it as airframes not including variations, then its 487 distinct aircraft types. If you include all the variants its in the thousands!!!!

  • @craigmoloney4486
    @craigmoloney4486 11 месяцев назад +14

    He rated the Spitfire MkXIV (fourteen) as the best piston figher of the war And he flew them all

  • @terraflow__bryanburdo4547
    @terraflow__bryanburdo4547 11 месяцев назад +69

    Master of his craft and so eloquent. We are.privileged to hear his thoughts so readily today.

  • @robertboyle2573
    @robertboyle2573 10 месяцев назад +17

    What a tremendous character Eric was.

  • @skykeg4978
    @skykeg4978 11 месяцев назад +20

    If I could ever be someone else in life, Eric “Winkle” Brown would be that person. He accomplished and did everything that I would dream about. A true gentlemen only adds to his legacy.

  • @MartinMcAvoy
    @MartinMcAvoy 11 месяцев назад +55

    I always learn so much from listening to Captain Brown. He was an extraordinary man and seemed to enjoy every moment of his long life. There were so many moments where sheer will was required to control the fear that is natural in near death experiences. He was RN but the RAF motto was apt for him. Per ardua ad astra.

  • @neilfoster814
    @neilfoster814 6 месяцев назад +5

    Eric Brown is one of those people I would have loved to have met face to face. He truly was a gift to mankind. RIP 'Winkle'.

  • @glynwelshkarelian3489
    @glynwelshkarelian3489 11 месяцев назад +46

    Anybody able to start an 'Eric 'Winkle' Brown Statue' crowdfunder? He will always be the World record holder of:
    1, Most kinds of aircraft flown; and
    2. Most landings at sea.
    On top of that his meticulous testing and analysis of the aircraft he flew advanced aircraft development by a quantum degree.
    On top of all that his life story is just astonishing; especially when told in his own low key, but precise, voice.

    • @walterkronkitesleftshoe6684
      @walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 11 месяцев назад +4

      I abhor "scamfunding" by instinct, BUT in the case of memorials to men such as "winkle" I'd more than happily chip in.

    • @glynwelshkarelian3489
      @glynwelshkarelian3489 11 месяцев назад +3

      @@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 If the Fleet Air Arm Museum got involved it would be funded within the hour; but a statue's not simple; and details need sorting before any fund is raised. Other memorials are available, but a statue is what is needed.

    • @mervabercrombie465
      @mervabercrombie465 11 месяцев назад +8

      There’s been a bronze life size statue of the man at Edinburgh Airport since July 2018. I was surprised at how short in height he was.

    • @glynwelshkarelian3489
      @glynwelshkarelian3489 11 месяцев назад +2

      @@mervabercrombie465 Excellent! I don't know how I missed that. He was nick named Winkle because of his hight.

    • @walterkronkitesleftshoe6684
      @walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 11 месяцев назад +4

      @@mervabercrombie465 Think he was 5'7" hence his nickname of "Winkle". I wasn't aware of that he already has a statue raised in his honour... He did spend a fair amount of time at Turnhouse according to his books, so its fitting for the statue to be there. It's good to know that he is already memorialised in some form.
      Thanks.

  • @jaws666
    @jaws666 11 месяцев назад +29

    An absloute legend.

  • @roteba1
    @roteba1 11 месяцев назад +11

    What a wonderful voice he had! It's said that when Eric Brown was presented to King George VI to collect another medal, the King looked at him and joked "Oh no! Not you again!"

    • @thethirdman225
      @thethirdman225 9 месяцев назад +2

      Haha! I don't know if that's true but it's funny.

  • @towgod7985
    @towgod7985 11 месяцев назад +10

    Another of the GREATEST Generation. R.I.P. sir.

  • @Boric78
    @Boric78 11 месяцев назад +32

    RIP Eric. Maybe the best pilot ever.........

  • @charlesmoss8119
    @charlesmoss8119 11 месяцев назад +26

    Based on how bloody dangerous being a test pilot was - it’s really a miracle any survived into old age - but some are just destined and the sinking of his carrier is another insight to that destiny. Some peoples lives are a boys own adventure!

    • @AudieHolland
      @AudieHolland 11 месяцев назад +6

      Well, it was miracle they survived their active career flying test planes.
      He retired in 1970.
      But to live to the age Brown did was probably just good genetics, as he only passed away in 2016, at the age of 97.

    • @mothmagic1
      @mothmagic1 11 месяцев назад +4

      Anyone wishing to have an understanding og this great man could do far worse than read his autobiography "Wings on My /Sleeve" A reference to the fact that the Fleet Air Arm wear their wings on thye sleeve rather than the chest.

    • @TTTT-oc4eb
      @TTTT-oc4eb 11 месяцев назад +5

      He even survived the Me 163.

    • @mothmagic1
      @mothmagic1 11 месяцев назад

      @@TTTT-oc4eb probably due to the fact that he was not allowed to fly it under power. Though with his usual skill I feel sure he would still have vot away witj it.

    • @DavidOfWhitehills
      @DavidOfWhitehills 11 месяцев назад +1

      @@mothmagic1 That's a good read.

  • @Spey_Phantom
    @Spey_Phantom 11 месяцев назад +19

    regarding the Bf109, Kurt Tank never liked it. he always said his FW190 was built and designed as a workhorse, one that can de anything and take a beating. looking at the Messerschmitt 109, he always concidered it "a glorified racehorse".

    • @TTTT-oc4eb
      @TTTT-oc4eb 11 месяцев назад +4

      Both the Spitfire and Bf 109 were planned and designed at a time when 2 x MGs still were considered adequate armament, so both planes were designed to be as light and small as possible. When the Fw 190 was planned it was clear that a fighter needed heavier armament and ability to take damage.

  • @welshpete12
    @welshpete12 11 месяцев назад +41

    A point not mentioned here . Was he had fluent German and had taught English in Germany prewar . Which gave him a great advantage after the war talking to captured German designers and pilots.

    • @tomhaskett5161
      @tomhaskett5161 11 месяцев назад +2

      He participated in the Nuhrenburg Trials

    • @FallNorth
      @FallNorth 11 месяцев назад +3

      @@tomhaskett5161
      ON THE GOOD SIDE :)

    • @FallNorth
      @FallNorth 11 месяцев назад +2

      Oh yes. At the outbreak of ww2 he might've been stuck in a camp but was allowed out as he was a student. He actually if I remember rightly intreviewed Goering, and goering being basically a pilot type person, they got on.

    • @jassonsw
      @jassonsw 7 месяцев назад +1

      He was present at the interview of Irma Grese and I saw him say in a TV interview that it was the only time he ever felt in the presence of pure evil.

    • @alanadair4893
      @alanadair4893 6 месяцев назад

      @@FallNorth😂😂😂

  • @keithroy9217
    @keithroy9217 10 месяцев назад +5

    I love the [paraphrased] comment, “If it looks right it usually flies right”. My family built and sailed boats over a number of generations and that statement (sail , instead of fly, of course) was pretty much my great grandfather’s mantra. You can measure all you like, but truly successful design is as much an aesthetic art as it is engineering.

  • @shropshire1233
    @shropshire1233 5 месяцев назад +4

    Really interesting. An old friend of mine, now sadly departed was also a Fleet Air Arm pilot who flew from the war until the late 60s. And flew most FAA aircraft up to the Sea Vixen. He also told me that the best aircraft he ever flew was the Sea Hornet.

  • @moreheff
    @moreheff 11 месяцев назад +21

    An amazing man and aviator. I love the way he is so matter of fact about everything, even the closest of shaves. Says everything about his skills that he survived the gliders best efforts to kill him, but it took the life of a glider expert. Very special guy and an absolute legend. I can listen to him and his exploits all day long

    • @oceanhome2023
      @oceanhome2023 6 месяцев назад

      I was shocked that he tested a glider, a very unique one that looked very much like the German rocket plane! I always wondered if The German pilots being restricted to flying gliders made them better pilots !

  • @HarborLockRoad
    @HarborLockRoad 11 месяцев назад +27

    How many of us wish they could have lived this mans incredible life??? ❤️

    • @glenmoss02
      @glenmoss02 11 месяцев назад +3

      That'd be like winning the lottery for me. He was one of a kind.

    • @Farweasel
      @Farweasel 11 месяцев назад +1

      Some of the things he got up to ....... I'd probably wake up gibbering if I didn't ouright die of fright!

    • @pilkipilki4472
      @pilkipilki4472 11 месяцев назад +1

      don't fancy being sunk by U-boat or being shot at

    • @w8stral
      @w8stral 11 месяцев назад +1

      Most of those who HAD his incredible life DIED doing exactly what he did. Testing Aircraft. My Grandfather flatly turned down several opportunities to flight test aircraft as most of his flying 1930's friends were dead doing exactly that and barnstorming/airshows by the time 1940 rolled around. He went into pilot training instead as he told the army Hell No I will not do flight testing at Wright Pat. (He just got married to so...)

    • @Farweasel
      @Farweasel 11 месяцев назад

      @@w8stral An erudite gentleman whose foresight ensured you're here to relate his wisdom to us.

  • @andrewfindlayphoto
    @andrewfindlayphoto 7 месяцев назад +4

    A few years ago. Not knowing who he was I spent some time chatting with Eric over a cup of tea at a café (Appleby Bakery) in Appleby, Cumbria. I thought he was embellishing his career stories. Imagine my surprise when I saw a BBC4 documentary on his life a few months later!

    • @alanadair4893
      @alanadair4893 6 месяцев назад +4

      You had a cuppa with a real hero and didn’t know love it 😂😂😂

  • @luvr381
    @luvr381 11 месяцев назад +11

    What a treasure! Thank you for posting this.

  • @momotheelder7124
    @momotheelder7124 11 месяцев назад +18

    The DH Hornet must be one of the most underrated planes of all time. It would have been interesting to see it go up against axis aircraft, though the conclusions might be skewed by the disparity in pilot quality at that point.

    • @thethirdman225
      @thethirdman225 8 месяцев назад +1

      Not really. It wasn’t produced in very large numbers, its service career was relatively short and the only conflict I’m aware of that it took part in was the Malayan Emergency. So, while it was an outstanding achievement and undoubtedly a fine aircraft, it was quickly replaced with jets.

    • @Hartley_Hare
      @Hartley_Hare Месяц назад

      It was absolutely beautiful as well. It justifies his words that an aircraft that looks right flies right.

  • @miroslavsynek6046
    @miroslavsynek6046 11 месяцев назад +8

    Eric Brown was and remains a legend, what more to say? Thank you for the superb video.

  • @kl0wnkiller912
    @kl0wnkiller912 11 месяцев назад +15

    The Ju-88 gets a short shrift when remembering really good WW2 aircraft. It was one of the very few aircraft of the war that served in every capacity; fighter, night fighter, bomber, recon, Torpedo bomber, transport,... it did them all with passing success. Later versions were as fast as the Mosquito. Glad to see he gave it due credit.

    • @thethirdman225
      @thethirdman225 9 месяцев назад

      Totally. Brown is extremely complimentary of it in his book, _'Wings of the Luftwaffe'._ Way too many people look at specifications and don't really understand the way they were operated. That's how you end up with arguments about the Ho-229, etc.. While those aircraft gain massive amounts of attention, most of the fighting was done by types like the Ju-88. Fantastic night fighter. Brown was also very complimentary about the Bf-110.

    • @JohnyG29
      @JohnyG29 7 месяцев назад

      ? Its a very well known and discussed aircraft. Stop being dramatic.

    • @thethirdman225
      @thethirdman225 7 месяцев назад

      @@JohnyG29 KMA

  • @jorodo299
    @jorodo299 10 месяцев назад +3

    Thanks for this. Read his autobiography a few years back and seem to remember his favourite aircraft were the Hornet and the F-86 Sabre.

  • @stephenrickstrew7237
    @stephenrickstrew7237 11 месяцев назад +5

    The Title of this episode gave me an Aero-Pavlovian Response ..

  • @joeschenk8400
    @joeschenk8400 11 месяцев назад +5

    A great video....the film of the dh Hornet are stunning. Thanks for the post.

  • @mickvonbornemann3824
    @mickvonbornemann3824 11 месяцев назад +11

    BF109 was only selected because it was so cheap to build, being a quarter the price of the Spitfire. There’s no doubt equivalent He112s were better than the BF109, but the 109 was a lot cheaper to make & transport - as the main landing gear hung down from the fuselage the wings were simple to remove making the 109 easy for rail or road transport

  • @asullivan4047
    @asullivan4047 9 месяцев назад +2

    Interesting and informative. Excellent photography job enabling viewers to better understand what the veteran guest pilot Brown was describing. Class A research project!!!

  • @james5353
    @james5353 11 месяцев назад +7

    Brilliant thanks for this one

  • @jonathanwetherell3609
    @jonathanwetherell3609 11 месяцев назад +2

    Always a treat to listen to an expert, Brown was the expert's expert. We will not see his like again.

  • @RemusKingOfRome
    @RemusKingOfRome 11 месяцев назад +6

    Another excellent video.

  • @grahambuckerfield4640
    @grahambuckerfield4640 11 месяцев назад +12

    From bi-planes to the Buccaneer. Most types flown of any pilot...

    • @doglover31418
      @doglover31418 11 месяцев назад +5

      From Gloster Gauntlet to F4 Phantom. No-one else will ever span all of aviation like that.

    • @barniem3148
      @barniem3148 8 месяцев назад +2

      @@doglover31418 exactly and the sheer number of different aircraft and variants / prototypes produced back then, particularly during WW2 and the post war jet era, will never ever be replicated again. Pilots were absolutely spoiled for choice.

    • @SIXITHS
      @SIXITHS 7 месяцев назад +2

      Even more incredible when you consider that for fairness he was counting the Spitfire as one aircraft, no matter how many different marks he flew.

  • @craigmidgley7909
    @craigmidgley7909 7 месяцев назад +1

    Kudos to the interviewer, asked short sensible questions then just let Captain Brown talk. A fascinating listen.

  • @walterkronkitesleftshoe6684
    @walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 11 месяцев назад +5

    I grew up in the 1970s listening to men such as Bob Stanford-Tuck, Johnnie Johnson (JEJ) and Douglas Bader, though at that time Eric Brown was unknown to me. What a generation of men they were. My childhood heroes. It's sad to think of their passing.
    But to paraphrase Patton "Its foolish and wrong to mourn their passing but celebrate that such men lived".

    • @Farweasel
      @Farweasel 11 месяцев назад

      Bader was a horrible, egottistical back-stabbing creature and no loss to anyone except Leigh Mallory & Sholto Douglas ............ A right prile of 💩s
      Bader *was a great self publicist* mind

  • @MrRugbylane
    @MrRugbylane 11 месяцев назад +11

    The only downside of this video is that its puts an end to debates about the best and worst aircraft of that era. That argument is now settled

  • @JohnSmith-bx8zb
    @JohnSmith-bx8zb 11 месяцев назад +6

    I worked with a Lancaster crew member for several years, he surprised me when he said that in full flying suit it was not possible to exit the front escape hatch. There is also reports of crews that transferred from Lancasters to Halifax’s and not wanting to return, more over the Halifax B 3 V1 had a top speed of over 300mph

    • @timr9633
      @timr9633 8 месяцев назад

      A dilemma for the crews. The Halifax had a higher loss ratio than the Lance but possessed better survivability odds for the flight crews.

    • @JohnSmith-bx8zb
      @JohnSmith-bx8zb 8 месяцев назад

      @@timr9633 and the Halifax mk3 b V1 had a higher speed

    • @Philliben1991
      @Philliben1991 7 месяцев назад

      @@timr9633 My grandfather flew the Halifax and according to him they were all glad to over the Lancaster. On one occasion they took 52 flak strikes and made it home. My grandfather was actually shot down on the last mission of his tour, attacking a night fighter base at Aachen. Three engines eventually failed and the bomb doors were stuck open due to damage to hydraulics but they still managed to get across Europe and the North Sea and crash land on the British coast. I doubt a Lancaster would have made it!

  • @lunaticfringe8066
    @lunaticfringe8066 11 месяцев назад +2

    One of the great aviators. Love listening to his stories.

  • @alanshepherd4304
    @alanshepherd4304 11 месяцев назад +2

    Great man, a wonderfully modest raconteur, I could listen to his stories all day!!😁😁🇬🇧

  • @moxey25
    @moxey25 7 месяцев назад +2

    Flew the 109 loved the tightness of the cockpit

  • @DataWaveTaGo
    @DataWaveTaGo 11 месяцев назад +7

    At 15:08 - General Aircraft GAL.56. Wow! Of course I know Eric survived in testing this craft, but just thinking this horrible design could have ended his life had my heart almost stopping.

    • @glenmoss02
      @glenmoss02 11 месяцев назад +4

      If Winkle Brown says an aircraft is dangerous, the designers better go back to the drawing board.

    • @DataWaveTaGo
      @DataWaveTaGo 11 месяцев назад +2

      @@ianmangham4570 Corrected. Thanks.

    • @ianmangham4570
      @ianmangham4570 11 месяцев назад +2

      @@glenmoss02 💯🤟🤠

  • @JamesLaserpimpWalsh
    @JamesLaserpimpWalsh 11 месяцев назад +12

    Good ! That settles it once and for all time in my mind "The 190 was ALMOST as perfect a machine as the Spitfire." That's the only opinion that matters to me lol. Cheers for the vid.

    • @MrM1729
      @MrM1729 11 месяцев назад +1

      Which Spit version compared to which 190? 😂

    • @SIXITHS
      @SIXITHS 7 месяцев назад +1

      Spitfire Mk.XIV and the FW190D

  • @ianmunro1427
    @ianmunro1427 6 месяцев назад +1

    A truly remarkable man. What a life.

  • @thegreyhound1073
    @thegreyhound1073 11 месяцев назад +5

    It missed the war but for some reason I've fallen in love with the hornet. Being a retired Marine I feel like I would be just as confident getting my CAS from an A-1. Put reasonable upgraded avionics and the ability to carry modern weapons. Add the ability to integrate target pods and link-16. Return to zero hour airframes. The marines are only allowed to keep fixed wing aircraft so we can use them for close air support of F-35 will never be good at.

    • @WALTERBROADDUS
      @WALTERBROADDUS 11 месяцев назад

      I would suggest that the A-29 is a better fit today.

    • @WALTERBROADDUS
      @WALTERBROADDUS 11 месяцев назад

      @Bilbo Fappins they did very well in Afghanistan. Recently the Philippines Air Force bought some.

  • @oleriis-vestergaard6844
    @oleriis-vestergaard6844 7 месяцев назад

    One of the heart trimning moments in Erics life was flying the Arado jet plane in the fading lights and saved by a row of american jeeps with the headlights turned on

  • @exsappermadman25055
    @exsappermadman25055 11 месяцев назад +5

    The greatest pilot no one knows of....What a guy!....

  • @FallNorth
    @FallNorth 11 месяцев назад +5

    When I was an air cadet in Scotland they used to take us out to fly gliders from a runway just beside Arbroath, which is a town in the north east a bit north of Dundee. It's still a Royal Navy base used by the fantastic Marines now but was much more "aviation" way back in the day. Brown was stationed there for a while... if you read his book, that's the runway he "taped out" to the size of a small aircraft carrier runway, to practice and prove he could land some planes on.He was a clever guy :) If the runways were parallel (I think they are), that's interesting to think about :) I'm guessing I did the same landing :) - Oh and for the record, I think the RM (it was basically all Marine then) breakfast was great, I'm surprised they aren't all fat b*stards, it was fantastic. And lots of signs for "Commanchio company" back in the 80s. - I was scared of indian attack :)
    (PS in the air cadets I also got to do full aerobatics, great days! I recommend it. ).

  • @WarStudiesWLV
    @WarStudiesWLV 11 месяцев назад

    Great video

  • @iskandartaib
    @iskandartaib 11 месяцев назад +12

    Did he get to fly many Japanese types? Curious to hear his take on the A6M and the N1K-J.

    • @1maico1
      @1maico1 11 месяцев назад +14

      He got to fly the Kawasaki Ki-61 Tony, Hitachi T.2, Mitsubishi G4M (Betty)
      Mitsubishi Ki-46 (Dinah), Mitsubishi A6M (Zero), Nakajima Ki-84 Hayate (Frank)and Nakajima Ki-43 Hayabusa (Oscar).
      He liked the zero as an aeroplane but not the lack of pilot protection or self-sealing fuel tanks etc.

    • @walterkronkitesleftshoe6684
      @walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 11 месяцев назад +4

      In his book "Duels in the air" Mr Brown rates the Japanese Kawanishi N1K2 Shinden-Kai as the 6th best fighter of WW2.

    • @Farweasel
      @Farweasel 11 месяцев назад

      @@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 Damn shame he never got to fly the Policarpov I-185
      (Ed Nash 'military matters' has a recent You Tube vid on the thing - it sounded exceptional)

  • @willhovell9019
    @willhovell9019 11 месяцев назад +3

    What an unique experienced judge of machines and technologies. The 109 was the equivalent of the Hawker Hurricane as a workhorse? Met Hawker, Smith, DeHaverland, Willy Messerschmitt and so many others including designers. The admiration for the ME 262 and Heinkle early jets. No mention of the Meteor though. The 'harmony of view'.

    • @DavidOfWhitehills
      @DavidOfWhitehills 11 месяцев назад +3

      I believe the Hurricane was a forgiving aircraft to fly. Winkle didn't find the 109 forgiving.

  • @jlvfr
    @jlvfr 11 месяцев назад +1

    Fortune favours the bold. And this was a bold man indeed.

  • @conradwood6700
    @conradwood6700 11 месяцев назад +1

    Excellent

  • @michaeldemetriou1399
    @michaeldemetriou1399 Месяц назад

    A hard working brave gentleman who could turn his hand to many tasks.

  • @FNHaole
    @FNHaole 11 месяцев назад +3

    “We’re tasked to build a tailless glider”.
    “Tricycle landing gear, or center skid?”
    “Neither: we’ll make it a tail-dragger.”

    • @walterkronkitesleftshoe6684
      @walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 11 месяцев назад

      Hopefully whoever conceived that abomination spent the rest of his life pushing shopping trollies around tesco's car park !!!!

  • @garymallett5962
    @garymallett5962 7 месяцев назад +1

    I read a lot of his reviews in Air International magazine

  • @fatbass22
    @fatbass22 7 месяцев назад

    An absolute legend

  • @thethirdman225
    @thethirdman225 9 месяцев назад +1

    Most of Brown's comments about the way the Me-262 was developed are actually not right. They are certainly common misconceptions but mos recent history shows that Hitler had little say in its use, the design was always intended as a fighter bomber and most importantly, it was actually introduced into service too _soon,_ rather than too late.
    That said, Brown's pilot reports are outstanding. I have three o his books and they are all well worth reading. His analysis of the German types from a pilot's perspective and I think his analysis of the designers is very telling.

  • @davidfoster5906
    @davidfoster5906 6 месяцев назад

    Captain brown was a hero and a genius of aviation. I took a class on race bicycle building .I said to the teacher that a fast bicycle looks like its moving even when still. He agreed. Machines that look fast often are.I was also a completion bike racer triathlete.

  • @akirasanakirasan5347
    @akirasanakirasan5347 11 месяцев назад +2

    A total Legend

  • @steamon2
    @steamon2 6 месяцев назад

    Years ago at work we had 2 pilots one flew a Lancaster one a Serling and they would argue which was better I remember the Sterling chap saying “ you could empty a machine gun into a Sterling engine and it kept going but one bullet in a Merlin radiator could stop it

  • @mothmagic1
    @mothmagic1 6 месяцев назад +1

    As has been said below a gentleman and a scholar. I was priviledged enough to meet this legend. The man who once reported to the board on a type he had just finished testing "The designers have made the aircraft very difficult to get into. That was a mistake, they should have made it bloody impossible". It's interesting to note that it didn't seem to jeopardise his promotion prospects.

    • @ArmouredCarriers
      @ArmouredCarriers  6 месяцев назад

      Perhaps it did ... he never made it above Captain!

    • @mothmagic1
      @mothmagic1 6 месяцев назад +1

      @@ArmouredCarriers Or the other side of the coin could be that they didn't promote him any higher because he was too valuable to be flying a desk.

    • @mothmagic1
      @mothmagic1 2 месяца назад +1

      @@ArmouredCarriers Remember though a navy captain is the equivalent of an army full colonel. I think they never promoted him any further because he was more value as a test pilot than as a desk jockey.

    • @ArmouredCarriers
      @ArmouredCarriers  2 месяца назад

      Very good point @@mothmagic1

  • @GARDENER42
    @GARDENER42 11 месяцев назад

    6:09 Field Marshal Slim when he was CIGS?

  • @PappyGunn
    @PappyGunn 7 месяцев назад +1

    Very interesting. I like hearing WW2 pilots talking about the aircraft themselves. I really want to find out what German pilot stought of Allied aircraft.

  • @richardmiranda640
    @richardmiranda640 10 месяцев назад

    That microphone picks up many interesting nuances.

  • @zenzen9131
    @zenzen9131 11 месяцев назад +4

    Easily the best aviator we have ever had :)

  • @soultraveller5027
    @soultraveller5027 8 месяцев назад +1

    Cpt Eric ''Winkle'' Brown RN, britain's most venerable chief test pilot in history achieved more deck landing on aircraft carriers then any aviator in History a total of 2,407 deck landing, never ever to be surpassed, some countries aviators tried to equal it, or get near it, never mind beating it, he flew every german aircraft that the allies captured or airworthy, even the dangerous Rocket engined ME 163 and Dornier Do 335 push pull two prop fighter, he wrote many books of the german aircraft thought ww2, and analyzed their weak points and strengths in a fair unbiased appraisal, and fair evaluation against allied aircraft of the time.

  • @JasonSnow-zq2ve
    @JasonSnow-zq2ve 11 месяцев назад +1

    Hitler never dictated that the 262 be used as a bomber, nor was it used extensively in that role. Hitler merely asked if it could carry bombs, which it could and occasionally did. As for the whole argument against the 109, exactly the same characteristics are present in the Spitfire.

    • @soultraveller5027
      @soultraveller5027 8 месяцев назад

      For the record on the ME 262 Fighter/bomber roles, Adolf Galland in his book ''The first and the last ''' which was his last one of 14 books he wrote in total he stated he was totally against the ME 262 being used as a jet bomber, two production lines were set up , for both productions however they were more bombers then fighters by command of Luftwaffe chief Air marshal Goring , galland argued Vehemently against this decision and the current leadership throughout the war, mainly at Reich Marshall Goring and the meddling of *Hitler (|He initial in 1944 ordered a ''directive'' to allocate more jet bombers then production of jet fighters, which he later rescinded, too late anyway) he stated in his last meeting with Goring, asked and pleaded about increasing production of fighters to that of jet bombers Goring refused point blank , instead galland received heavy criticism of his handling of the air defence of the Reich,to which he rebuked the Reich Air Marshal , he was relieved of command as Generalleutnant of the fighter force , he was placed under house arrest, until summoned to command a ME 262 fighter group , he said later Goring offered a full apology, matters were never settled between them, this is just a short cut, to the constant bickering and meddling and distrust by Hitler' in gallands plans to hit the allied bomber formations which were rejected, the whole leadership top down was a shambles, had galland had a free hand he claimed the situation would been very costly for the allied bombers it wouldn't have won the war, but might have relieved a little pressure off on the Reich,.
      As for the Spitfire, ermm interesting, how would you know have you flown many of either a spitfire or messerschmitt 109 ..? thats a NO then, have you more expert knowledge then Britain's Chief test pilot of that time, Capt Eric winkle brown please share your expertise on this matter, he flew all the marks of spitfires and after the war, he flew every german aircraft captured by the allies that was airworthy, even the Me 163 rocket fueled fighter the Donier Do 335 he achieved more decking landing on carriers then any aviator in history achieving 2.407 what have you done with your life, i wonder let me see here , you sound like a yank , not just a ordinary yank that's ok , No No your a special yank a irish/american yank, who hates on anything british specially spitfires and merlin engines was his thing, This shithouse is always on british military things about the last war, always disrespecting talking shit, about anything british quite frankly, he name is ''knobhead'' (Wiber) or @ soaringtractor, he had many alis hiding like a snake on the ground, a irish/american potato picker a supporter of the IRA and the bombings and a Nonce too. do you know him ? any chance i'm always hunting him down he's a coward you know .

  • @michaelcostigane552
    @michaelcostigane552 4 месяца назад

    A Legend ❤❤❤❤❤❤

  • @BingoFrogstrangler
    @BingoFrogstrangler 6 месяцев назад

    I believe he holds the record for aircraft carrier landings.

  • @darincampbell8851
    @darincampbell8851 11 месяцев назад +1

    Just curious having seen this video was the Hornet what the Whirlwind could have been given the chance to develope?

    • @darincampbell8851
      @darincampbell8851 11 месяцев назад

      should add keep up the good work Jamie

    • @ArmouredCarriers
      @ArmouredCarriers  11 месяцев назад

      I'm afraid that's a bit out of my league. I'll keep my eye open for stuff on the Whirlwind, though.

  • @rabbit5981
    @rabbit5981 5 месяцев назад +1

    His book is a good read.

  • @nervo6321
    @nervo6321 11 месяцев назад +1

    One of my very few heroes.

  • @rscooper4950
    @rscooper4950 10 месяцев назад +1

    DH Hornet similar to Westland Whirlwind with Merlins.

    • @SIXITHS
      @SIXITHS 7 месяцев назад +1

      The Hornet is closer to a single-seat Mosquito

  • @lesterbeedell9725
    @lesterbeedell9725 11 месяцев назад +2

    The Butcher Bird FW190

  • @USAACbrat
    @USAACbrat 5 месяцев назад +1

    The 66 had no flaps, why they correct trim

  • @nealm1814
    @nealm1814 11 месяцев назад +4

    The greatest pilot who ever lived.

    • @exsappermadman25055
      @exsappermadman25055 11 месяцев назад

      Landing a bomber on a carrier was considered by the top brass as a suicide mission....Eric thought not...

    • @thegreat_I_am
      @thegreat_I_am 11 месяцев назад

      And he flew the Me 163 Komet when even the German ground crew told him not to!

  • @ray.shoesmith
    @ray.shoesmith 6 месяцев назад

    Finest aviator ever born imo

  • @yojimbo103
    @yojimbo103 2 месяца назад

    Surprising that the GAL.56 beats out even the DH.108 - which would have killed him had he not been a little man - as his least favourite.

  • @billballbuster7186
    @billballbuster7186 11 месяцев назад +1

    Very interesting information, The Me262 had swept wings to balance the aircraft, the aerodynamic advantage was discovered later. The main issue with the 262 was the poor engines they would never have been allowed in a British or US fighter.

    • @JohnSmith-ei2pz
      @JohnSmith-ei2pz 11 месяцев назад

      Both nations were so backward, so no airframe to fit too!

    • @billballbuster7186
      @billballbuster7186 11 месяцев назад

      @@JohnSmith-ei2pz Thank you for that pearl of wisdom, but No. The Germans were desperate and flew aircraft without testing. After WW2 only the Czechs tried to produce the 262 but it was considered junk.

  • @williamloh9018
    @williamloh9018 11 месяцев назад +8

    The great man... Wonder why he is not knighted. As usual, England somehow manages to forget her own saviours.

  • @drgondog
    @drgondog 11 месяцев назад +4

    Brown was incorrect re: sweep wing design for Me 262 an example of forward thinking design concept. They had to sweep (slightly) in order to move the wing center of Pressure (Lift) aft to achieve suitable stability and control. It had nothing to with mitigating Mach effects and far too small a sweep to make a difference.

    • @patrickgriffitt6551
      @patrickgriffitt6551 11 месяцев назад

      Can't say for sure but read somewhere the Me262 had a higher limiting mach number than the lockheed p-80.

    • @drgondog
      @drgondog 11 месяцев назад

      @@patrickgriffitt6551 - If so, marginal at best. The primary advantage the 262 had in flight test comparison vs P-80A in 1946 was simply more thrust in the two Jumo engines. The Mach related parasite drag and compressibi;ity drag rise curves are very close between the P-51, Spitfire, 262 and P-80 were very close.

  • @Allan_aka_RocKITEman
    @Allan_aka_RocKITEman 11 месяцев назад +1

    R.I.P., _"Winkle."_

  • @rayg4360
    @rayg4360 11 месяцев назад

    What did he say re Heinkel, that was blocked ?

    • @ArmouredCarriers
      @ArmouredCarriers  11 месяцев назад +1

      It was a distortion in the old audio. I think the bit you are referring to is where Brown claims Heinkel was a Jew. Though I'm not sure of the accuracy of that statement.

  • @chrishalstead4405
    @chrishalstead4405 7 месяцев назад

    We shall not see his like again 😢

  • @moxey25
    @moxey25 7 месяцев назад +1

    Met him fixed his toiletseen the pictures and sat and talked to him for ages

  • @drmoss_ca
    @drmoss_ca 10 месяцев назад

    I have never heard anyone else suggest Ernst Heinkel was Jewish. I can't find any confirmation of that, and so I wonder if Brown was mistaken or mis-remembered?

    • @ArmouredCarriers
      @ArmouredCarriers  10 месяцев назад

      Always possible. It may have been propaganda / rumour at the time.

  • @nervo6321
    @nervo6321 11 месяцев назад +1

    The tailless glider looks absolutely hideous.

  • @andyb.1026
    @andyb.1026 11 месяцев назад

    Did He ever meet Gnl Chuck Yeager

    • @b577960
      @b577960 11 месяцев назад +2

      I’m sure if he did, he would have the same opinion of him as many other aviators etc did. Yeager very good pilot, but an ass of a man. Nothing like Winkle who was a great man first and also a great pilot

    • @PhilMasters
      @PhilMasters 11 месяцев назад

      Yeager was apparently particularly prone to being pointlessly rude to British people.

    • @andyb.1026
      @andyb.1026 8 месяцев назад

      Yeager was not in the same league as Brown as a pilot, even less as a person

  • @rapitisioannis
    @rapitisioannis 9 месяцев назад +1

    anyway, the reality is that he owes his life to the F3F (for that reason the best), the only one he flew in real combat conditions!!!

    • @ArmouredCarriers
      @ArmouredCarriers  9 месяцев назад +2

      Also the Skua. His account is on this channel

  • @richardrichard5409
    @richardrichard5409 11 месяцев назад +5

    More 109s lost to accidents than in combat.

  • @tomatokosir
    @tomatokosir 11 месяцев назад

    You have a whole section at the start repeated. You have a whole section at the start repeated.

    • @ArmouredCarriers
      @ArmouredCarriers  11 месяцев назад

      Argh. Thanks for the heads-up. I'll fix that now.

  • @carlowingfield7743
    @carlowingfield7743 11 месяцев назад

    A good egg .

  • @mabbrey
    @mabbrey 11 месяцев назад

    if anyone knows he knows

  • @majorlee76251
    @majorlee76251 6 месяцев назад

    I wonder if there was any plane that he would never fly due to be so badly designed or built.

  • @duggiebader1798
    @duggiebader1798 7 месяцев назад

    Eric would have been the ultimate RUclips commentator that would end every argument on ww2+ aeronautics. Tbf, I've quoted him when I come across some twit who's throwing his nationalistic bullshit around. It does shut them up.

  • @hog8035
    @hog8035 11 месяцев назад

    🇺🇸🫡🇬🇧

  • @rapitisioannis
    @rapitisioannis 9 месяцев назад

    no intention to name any US airplane, ... those British!

    • @ArmouredCarriers
      @ArmouredCarriers  9 месяцев назад +2

      Heh. I guess that may be as much the fault of the narrow question and my editing. His books make it quite clear he was especially impressed with the Corsair and Hellcat, for example.

    • @barniem3148
      @barniem3148 8 месяцев назад +1

      He loved the Wildcat and flew them extensively in the fleet air arm before his ship was torpedoed by a German U-boat - they were particularly good at dealing with the German FW-200 Condor.
      Edit: Indeed sorry Wildcat, not Hellcat *

    • @rapitisioannis
      @rapitisioannis 8 месяцев назад

      @@barniem3148 you mean wildcat!

    • @ArmouredCarriers
      @ArmouredCarriers  8 месяцев назад

      He talks about that experience here: ruclips.net/video/xIKG1fqJ1TA/видео.html @@barniem3148