Over three years ago, author and historian Paul Beaver told me about the biography he was writing of his friend, the test pilot Captain Eric 'Winkle' Brown RN. Winkle is widely felt to be the greatest pilot Britain has ever produced, perhaps the world has produced (argue that in the comments below!). But, for the myriad of tales Eric and others told about his life, the truth about his birth and his struggles with his superiors create a far more nuanced character than we understood before. In Beaver's biography, Eric Brown the man stands more clearly than we have seen him before.

I have to thank Ruth at Michael Joesph for the review copy of Winkle. I now have to finish my Iain Ballyntine review for IFR Warships! There is no rest for the wicked.

Let me know what you think. Was Eric the 'world's greatest pilot' or just Britain's?

You can follow Paul Beaver on Twitter at [ Ссылка ]
You can buy a copy of Winkle: The Extraordinary Life of Britain's Greatest Pilot at The Damcasters Bookshop in the UK (10% of each purchase supports the pod) here [ Ссылка ]

Paul will be speaking about Winkle at the Chalke Valley History Festival on Wednesday, 28th June at 12:00. You can get your festival tickets at [ Ссылка ]

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Learn more about the Titan Missle Museum here: [ Ссылка ]
Find out who is in the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame here: [ Ссылка ]
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