He may be the greatest fighter ace that history nearly forgot. Marmaduke Thomas St John “Pat” Pattle is believed to have scored more aerial victories than any other British Commonwealth pilot in World War II — yet his records were largely lost, his story barely known outside specialist circles. What survives is remarkable enough.

A South African in the Desert

Born on 3 July 1914 in Butterworth, South Africa, Pattle joined the RAF in 1936 and was posted to 80 Squadron in Egypt when the war began. He first flew the Gloster Gladiator — a biplane fighter already considered outdated — against the Italian Regia Aeronautica over Libya. Against modern Italian monoplanes, the agile Gladiator in Pattle’s hands was a deadly weapon, and he began building a tally that would eventually become legendary.

The Campaign in Greece

When Italy invaded Greece in October 1940, RAF squadrons were rushed to assist the Greeks, and Pattle went with them. Flying first Gladiators and then the more modern Hawker Hurricane, he faced both Italian and German aircraft over the mountains and plains of Greece. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and Bar in rapid succession as his victory tally climbed.

In the chaotic weeks of April 1941, as Germany launched its overwhelming invasion of Greece and Yugoslavia, Pattle flew multiple sorties per day against impossible odds. Eyewitness accounts describe him as virtually living in the cockpit — shooting down aircraft almost daily while exhausted RAF squadrons fought a desperate rearguard action.

The Mystery of His Score

The precise number of Pattle’s victories is unknown — the RAF’s record-keeping in the chaos of the Greek campaign was incomplete, and many claims were never formally processed. Conservative estimates credit him with at least 40 to 50 victories; some historians believe the true figure may have approached 60. If the higher estimates are correct, he was the greatest British Commonwealth ace of the war.

A Final Sacrifice

On 20 April 1941, Pattle led a small force of Hurricanes over Athens against a massive German formation. He was sick with influenza — so ill he could barely stand — but refused to stay on the ground while his comrades fought. He was shot down and killed over the Bay of Eleusis. He was twenty-six years old.

Pat Pattle’s body was never recovered. He left behind an unfinished story and a tally that may never be fully known — but among those who study the air war, his name is spoken with reverence as a pilot of genius, courage, and selfless dedication.