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No.80 Sqn


Aviation Art Prints Countries UK Squadron Index More Squadrons Squadrons 61 to 87 No.80 Sqn

[UP] - No.61 Sqn - No.62 Sqn - No.65 Sqn - No.66 Sqn - No.68 Sqn - No.69 Sqn - No.70 Sqn - No.71 Sqn - No.72 Sqn - No.73 Sqn - No.74 Sqn - No.75 Sqn RAAF - No.76 Sqn - No.76 Sqn RAAF - No.77 Sqn RAAF - No.78 Sqn - No.79 Sqn - No.80 Sqn - No.81 Sqn - No.83 Sqn - No.84 Sqn - No.87 Sqn


No.80 Sqn
Country : UK
Founded : 1st August 1917
Disbanded 28th September 1960
Codes : , W2, AP, EY, GK, YK,


Nil nobis obstare potest - Nothing can stop us

80 Squadron was formed at Montrose on the 10th August 1917, and saw action in France, specialising in the ground attack role. Remaining in Belgium after the war, they moved to Egypt in May 1919 where it was renumbered 56 the following year. 80 squadron re-formed at Kenley on 8th March 1937, equipped with Gloster Gauntlets and Gladiators. Posted to Egypt in May 1938, the squadron joined No.33 to form a Gladiator Wing for defence of the Suez canal. When Italy entered the war, 80 squadron was stationed at Amriya equipped with Gladiators and one Hurricane. In November 1940, the squadron moved to Greece and in February 1941, the squadron equipped with a mixture of Gladiators and Hurricanes was used on bomber escort duties. In March the Germans came to the aid of their Italian Allies and on 24th March the squadron was evacuated to Crete and then to Palestine. In November 1941 they returned to the Western Desert to take part in the relief of Tobruk. During 1942-43, the squadron was on defence duties and convoy escort work over the Eastern Mediterranean. Posted to Italy in January 1944 and then onto the UK, they were re-equipped with Spitfires Mk IX. 80 Squadron then took part in bomber escorts, sweeps and armed reconnaissance. They began to re-equip with the Hawker Tempest, and were used for anti V1 operations. 80 Squadron was posted to the continent to support the Arnhem landings and roamed over Germany in the ground attack role. They remained in Germany as part of the occupation force until 1949. It was then sent to Hong Kong on air defence duties equipped with Spitfires and Hornets between 1949 and 1955. Disbanded in 1955, 80 Squadron reformed in Germany as a P R Squadron equipped with Canberras PR7. They finally disbanded in September 1969.



No.80 Sqn Aviation Art Prints, Paintings and Drawings
Aviation Art

Gloster Gladiator Mk II L8011 YK-O. by M A Kinnear.


Gloster Gladiator Mk II L8011 YK-O. by M A Kinnear.
One edition.
£10.00

Textbook Attack by David Pentland.


Textbook Attack by David Pentland.
3 of 4 editions available.
All 4 editions feature up to 2 additional signatures.
£75.00 - £250.00

Forgotten Hero by Stan Stokes.


Forgotten Hero by Stan Stokes.
One of 3 editions available.
£35.00


Tribute to Peter Wykeham-Barnes by Ivan Berryman.


Tribute to Peter Wykeham-Barnes by Ivan Berryman.
8 editions.
£2.70 - £1100.00

Pattle's First Victory, 4th August 1940 by David Pentland.


Pattle's First Victory, 4th August 1940 by David Pentland.
6 of 7 editions available.
All 2 editions featuring an additional signature are available.
£2.20 - £500.00



Text for the above items :

Gloster Gladiator Mk II L8011 YK-O. by M A Kinnear.

Aircraft History: Built by Gloster Aircraft, L8011 was one of a batch of 28 Gladiators delivered in September 1938 to the Royal Air Force. Allocated to 80 Squadron, L8011 saw service in North Africa and Greece, until it was transferred to the Royal Hellenic Air Force, 15th December 1940.

Squadron Leader Marmaduke T St. John Pat Pattle, DFC: Born on 3rd July 1914 in Butterworth, Cape Province, South Africa, Pat Pattle joined 80 Squadron in 1937. The Squadron was sent to Egypt in April 1938, and Pattle became a flight commander in 1939. During August 1940 the Squadron moved up to the Libyan border. Whilst escorting a Lysander, Pattles flight was engaged by a force of Italian fighters. Pattle (claiming 2) was forced to bale out inside Italian territory, but returned to base the next day. The Squadron moved to Greece in November in support of Greek forces on the Albanian border. Pattle was awarded the DFC in February 1941. In March he was awarded a bar to the DFC promoted to Squadron Leader and given command of 33 squadron equipped with Hawker Hurricanes Mk I. By this time he was credited with 23 victories. Due to the chaotic conditions during the British and Greek retreat, records were lost. However, relying on personal records and memories, it appears that his score of victories was 50 (possibly as high as 60) making him the highest scoring RAF pilot of the war. On 20th April 1941, he led the combined remnants of No.s 33 and 80 squadrons from Eleusis airfield. Although suffering from influenza and fatigue and on his third sortie of the day, Pattle led the remaining Hurricanes to intercept a German formation over Eleusis Bay. He was seen to shoot down a Bf110 but two other Bf110s then attacked him. Pattle was hit and he was seen slumped forward in the cockpit of his aircraft as it fell into the Bay.


Textbook Attack by David Pentland.

Bir el Gobi, North Africa, 8th August 1940. A full squadron sweep into Libya by 80 Squadron, designed to give the enemy a bloody nose was devised and implemented by Squadron Leader Paddy Dunn. In all 13 of the unit's Gloster Gladiators engaged some 16 Fiat Cr.42s and 2 Ro.37s, inflicting considerable damage on the enemy. Last to enter the fray were the top cover vic of Pat Pattle, Sid Richens and Greg Shorty Graham. By the end of the brief 5 minute battle 9 Italian aircraft were confirmed destroyed plus 6 probables.


Forgotten Hero by Stan Stokes.

Marmaduke St. John Pattle, known as Pat to his friends, was born in South Africa in 1913. Pattle came from a family with a military tradition, and upon graduation from Graemian College he joined the South African Air Force. Pattle, unfortunately, was not accepted for air crew training, and he returned to civilian life for a time. In 1936 Pattle went to England where he joined the RAF, graduating near the top of his class in pilot training. He was assigned to No. 80 Squadron which flew the Gloster Gladiator. In 1938 the squadron was moved to Egypt. When war broke out in 1939, Pattle had been promoted to Flight Commander. For the first several months of the war Pattle saw little action as his missions were routine patrols of the Suez Canal. When Italy entered the War in 1940, the situation changed dramatically, as the British were vastly outnumbered in North Africa by both Italian troops and aircraft. Pattles first victory, in a Gladiator, came on July 24, 1940. When Italy attacked Greece, No. 80 Squadron was moved north to assist the Greek army in fighting the invaders. Pattle attained several more victories before the end of 1940, and his reputation as an excellent tactician and marksman had grown. In February of 1941, Pattles squadron received the first of their Hawker Hurricanes, a vastly superior aircraft when compared to the aging Gladiators. Pattle wasted no time in adapting to his new machine, and bagged his first victory in a Hurricane on February 20. A week later the Italians mounted a massive offensive, attempting to gain as much ground as possible before Germany joined in the hostilities. No. 80, No. 33, and No. 112 Squadrons saw tremendous action during this offensive. In one 90-minute air battle during the campaign No. 80 and No. 33 attained an amazing 27 confirmed victories. Pattles score rose swiftly and steadily during this campaign, and many of his victims were CR.42 and G.50s. In April, Hitlers forces attacked both Greece and Yugoslavia. More than 1,000 Luftwaffe combat aircraft were thrown into the battle, including the high performance Bf-109. Despite the numerical superiority of the Luftwaffe, the RAF pilots fought on. Pattle destroyed two 109s in a strafing attack on April 8th, and on the next day he downed his first German bomber. Hopelessly outnumbered, and with only fifteen serviceable Hurricanes left, the RAF fought on. On April 19 Pattle and the remaining Hurricanes intercepted a flight of more than 100 German aircraft heading for Athens. Pattle downed two 110s and a 109, but his Hurricane was riddled by a 110 which had snuck up on his tail. Pattles Hurricane tumbled into the sea. While Pattles official victory total remains under some dispute, those pilots which fought alongside him during those hectic months of aerial combat, insist that Pattle, recipient of the DFC, downed more than forty enemy aircraft, making him one of the top Allied aces of WW II.


Tribute to Peter Wykeham-Barnes by Ivan Berryman.

Lattely known as Air Marshal Sir Peter Guy Wykeham, KCB, DSO and Bar, OBE, DFC and Bar, AFC - he is shown here baling out of his stricken Gloster Gladiator of No.80 Sqn over North Africa on 4th August 1940. At the time he would have been known as Peter Wykeham-Barnes - a flying Ace who would go on to score 14 victories plus 3 shared in a wartime career which also saw him fly with No.274 Sqn and command No.73 Sqn, No.257 Sqn and No.23 Sqn. Remaining with the Royal Air Force after the war, he became a test pilot and served with the US Air Force in the Korean War before taking serveral roles in the RAF, culminating in Deputy Chief of Air Staff from 1967 until retirement in 1969. He died in 1995.


Pattle's First Victory, 4th August 1940 by David Pentland.

Gloster Gladiators flown by Flt. Lt. M.T. Pattle and Flying Officer Johnny Lancaster surprise a flight of Breda 65s from 59A Squadriglia over Bit Taob El Essem, North Africa. Pattle went on to be top Commonwealth Air Ace of all time.



View No.80 Sqn RAF Aircraft


View No.80 Sqn RAF Signatures
Aces for : No.80 Sqn RAF
A list of all Aces from our database who are known to have flown with this squadron. A profile page is available by clicking the pilots name.
NameVictoriesInfo
Marmaduke Pattle34.00
William Vale22.00
John Harry Stafford5.00The signature of John Harry Stafford features on some of our artwork - click here to see what is available.



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