Record-breaking pilot Eric 'Winkle' Brown dies aged 97

Captain Eric "Winkle" Brown, the most decorated pilot in British naval history, has died after a short illness. He was 97.

Born in Edinburgh to a father who served as a pilot in the fledging Royal Flying Corps during the First World War, Brown learnt to fly while at university and joined the Fleet Air Arm at the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939.

Assigned to protect naval convoys in the North Atlantic, he immediately distinguished himself as a brave and gifted pilot. It was on these escort missions that he racked up the majority of the 2,407 aircraft-carrier landings that would later make him a world record holder.

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After his ship, the HMS Audacity, was torpedoed and sunk, Brown was posted back to Britain to test new aircraft. Having already been awarded the Distinguished Service Cross in 1942, he was made an MBE in 1944 in recognition of his bravery and skill in these trials.

After the war, Brown continued to test aircraft, often risking his life to try out new technologies. In 1949, he was knocked unconscious after the prototype jet-powered flying boat he was testing collided with submerged debris near the Isle of Wight, while during the Korean War, he was chosen to demonstrate the latest innovation in aircraft carrier take-offs – the steam-assisted catapult launch.

In the 1950s and 1960s, Brown spent several years as a naval diplomat in Germany and was later appointed to the Admiralty. He retired from the Royal Navy in 1970, the year he was promoted to a CBE in the New Year Honours list.

Brown continued to fly planes until 1994, as well as writing several books and giving lectures on his experiences.

Among his many accomplishments, he holds the Guinness World Record for most types of aircraft flown, piloting at least 487 types of planes, flying boats and helicopters.

Tributes from the world of aviation have been pouring in, with British astronaut Tim Peake tweeting from the International Space Stations that Brown was a "true inspiration".