Paterson Clarence Hughes, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

Paterson Clarence Hughes

Australian fighter ace

Date of Birth: 19-Sep-1917

Place of Birth: Cooma, New South Wales, Australia

Date of Death: 07-Sep-1940

Profession: fighter pilot

Nationality: Australia

Zodiac Sign: Virgo

Paterson Clarence Hughes, DFC (19 September 1917 – 7 September 1940) was an Australian fighter ace of World War II.
Serving with the Royal Air Force (RAF), he was credited with as many as seventeen aerial victories during the Battle of Britain, before being killed in action on 7 September 1940.
His tally made him the highest-scoring Australian of the battle, and among the three highest-scoring Australians of the war. Born in Cooma, New South Wales, Hughes joined the Royal Australian Air Force as a cadet in 1936.
After graduating as a pilot, he chose to take a commission with the RAF.
In July 1937, he was assigned to No.
64 Squadron, which operated Hawker Demon and, later, Bristol Blenheim fighters.
Posted to No.
234 Squadron following the outbreak of World War II, Hughes began flying Supermarine Spitfires as a flight commander.
He shared in his unit's first aerial victory on 8 July 1940, and began scoring heavily against the Luftwaffe the following month.
Known for his practice of attacking his targets at extremely close range, Hughes is generally thought to have died after his Spitfire was struck by flying debris from a German bomber that he had just shot down.
He was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, and was buried in England.