Winkle
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Winkle
We have recently had the honour of a TV interview at the Farnborough Aerospace & Science Trust with Eric 'Winkle' Brown - the renown Fleet Air Arm and Test Pilot. Can anyone enlighten me where he got the name 'Winkle' from? The story doing the rounds at the Trust is that there has to be an extant RN pilot with the nickname and he was appointed that honour when he was in service and will hold it until he goes to the great carrier in the sky.
Join Date: Jul 2000
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His size (5' 7") is one of the three things to which 'Winkle' Brown attributes his survival:
Interesting interview here - Profile: Captain E M Brown CBE AFC DFC FRAeS RN
It starts at page 8 of the link.
“Firstly, I prepared myself very, very carefully for every flight. Secondly, my size worked in my favour – in the Swallow, in the crash of an Me 163 at Wittering and in other cases, I would have been killed, or at least lost my legs, had I been taller. Thirdly, there’s a small element of luck, whatever that is.”
It starts at page 8 of the link.
Join Date: Sep 2010
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Good video interview (in two parts) with Captain Brown here...
Video interview - Captain Eric 'Winkle' Brown | Aerospace Insight | The Royal Aeronautical Society
Video interview - Captain Eric 'Winkle' Brown | Aerospace Insight | The Royal Aeronautical Society
