The recent theory describing 3‐D exact solutions of the Navier–Stokes equations is applied to the problem of stability of 2‐D viscous flow with elliptical streamlines. An intrinsically inviscid instability mechanism persists in all such flows provided the length scale of the disturbance is sufficiently large. Evidence is presented that this mechanism may be responsible for 3‐D instabilities in high Reynolds number flows whose vortex structures can be locally described by elliptical streamlines.