How One Woman’s “Worthless” Brass Washer Solved the Flaw That Killed 300 RAF Pilots скачать в хорошем качестве

How One Woman’s “Worthless” Brass Washer Solved the Flaw That Killed 300 RAF Pilots

#ww2history #ww2 #worldwar2 In 1940, RAF Spitfire pilots faced a deadly flaw the Air Ministry refused to confront. When chasing diving Messerschmitts into negative-G maneuvers, their Merlin engines cut out without warning. Spitfires went silent mid-air while German fighters escaped—or turned back to kill them. Pilots called it suicide. Engineers called it unsolvable. Beatrice Shilling—a young engineer at the Royal Aircraft Establishment—disagreed. Her answer was absurdly simple: a brass washer no bigger than a coin. Cost: pennies. Installation time: minutes. The Air Ministry dismissed it as “not a priority.” Senior engineers called it crude, improper, and unworthy of serious consideration. She installed it anyway. Almost overnight, Spitfires could follow Bf 109s straight down without losing power. Pilots stopped flying defensively and began hunting aggressively. Air combat tactics shifted—permanently. By 1942, nearly every Spitfire in the RAF carried what pilots nicknamed “Miss Shilling’s Orifice.” Conservative estimates suggest the fix saved thousands of lives and helped secure British air superiority when it mattered most. One woman. One brass washer. A turning point in the Battle of Britain. 👍 If this story inspired you, like the video and subscribe for more untold WWII innovations. 💬 Had you heard of Beatrice Shilling before? Let us know in the comments.