A FAMOUS British pilot fought with the Spanish Republicans as a teenager, it has been revealed.

Eric “Winkle” Brown, a Scottish test pilot who was recognised as having flown more types of aircraft than any other person in history, joined to fight to defend the Spanish Republic in 1936, documentary film-maker Nicholas Jones said on Saturday.

As a student at Edinburgh University, Mr Brown met a man who convinced him to fly for the beleaguered democratic government, whose air force had been devastated by defections to Francisco Franco’s fascist forces.  

Mr Jones, who has produced a documentary on Mr Brown, said the young pilot flew reconnaissance missions against fascist forces.

He told the Daily Record: “I raised the subject with him and there was a silence – it was the only time I saw him seem uncomfortable.”

After fighting with distinction in the second world war, Mr Brown became a noted pioneer of jet technology. He died in 2016, aged 97.