Frank Alfred Patten, age 82, of Milton, FL, passed away peacefully surrounded by his loved ones on Sunday, February 19, 2023, after a brief battle with leukemia. He was born on November 23, 1940, in Butler, PA and lived there until he graduated from high school. He studied at the Indiana Technical College in Fort Wayne, IN from 1959-1961, then attended Spartan School of Aeronautics in Tulsa, OK from 1962-1964.

Frank spent his entire adult life mastering the art of flying. He began to fly with his Uncle George when he was only 16 and started his formal flying education in 1959 at the age of 18 in Thompson, PA. His first solo flight was November 1959 in Fort Wayne, IN where he earned his private pilot's license in 1961. Frank earned his commercial pilot certificate and became an FAA certified flight instructor in 1962 at Spartan. He also earned his multi-engine rating, his instrument airplane rating and the rating to teach instruments while at Spartan.

In January 1967, Frank obtained a job with Ross Aviation at Ft. Rucker, AL as a civilian contractor and started training military students in February 1967. He served in the Alabama Army National Guard from 1974 until 1998 and received the first direct appointment as a Warrant Officer. During his time in the Guard, he earned the qualifications to fly the U-8 Seminole, C-7 Caribou, and the C-23 Sherpa. He completed the Rotary Wing Course in the UH-1H Huey and the Bell OH-58 Kiowa and transitioned to teaching rotary wing instrument flying in 1980. He was deployed with the Guard every summer for 2 weeks in Korea. Frank was type-rated and flew every aircraft that the Alabama National Guard had. He graduated from the instrument Flight Examiners Course in 1984 and obtained the highest pilot certificate when he earned the Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) certificate in 1990.

Frank really enjoyed training the next generation of U.S. Army helicopter pilots and took many of them and their spouses out to dinner following their graduation. He kept in touch with some of his students and was loved and respected by all of them. On November 6, 2015, Frank was awarded the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award that recognizes pilots who have practiced safe flight operations continuously for 50 or more years during the course of their aviation careers. He retired on January 22, 2021 at the age of 80. He had accumulated over 30,000 flying hours during his lifetime.

Frank was also well-known for his story-telling abilities. He loved to reminisce about his childhood and his flying adventures. He was a Mason and a member of Sons of the American Revolution, The American Legion, and the Knights Templar. He loved to hunt, swim, fish, and drive his boat.

Frank is preceded in death by his father, John Alfred Patten; his mother, Esther McChesney Patten; his Uncle George McChesney; his wife of 38 years, Teresa Anne Patten, and his son-in-law and best friend Ricky Perkins.

Frank is survived by his wife, Judy Ishee-Patten; a son, John Alfred Patten (Rhonda); a daughter, Christine Anne Patten Wingate (Barry); a grandson, Steve Cody Perkins (Brooke); two granddaughters, Anna Claire and Abigail Patten; and three great-grandchildren Eli, Blakely, and Jackson Perkins.

Frank was a devoted and loving husband to Teresa who died of Cancer in 2001. Following her death, he met Judy Harbaugh Ishee whose husband had passed in 1998. Frank and Judy were married in Trinity Episcopal Church in Mobile, Alabama in June 2003.

A Celebration of Life Service will be held at 10:00 AM on Saturday, March 11, 2023, at The Mission Anglican Church, 600 N Alcaniz St, Pensacola, FL.