Alec and Vera had agreed that if he was killed, she and their son would settle in Melbourne with the help of Little’s family. This duly happened. Vera remarried in the 1920s; Alec junior grew up to head the electronics laboratory at Melbourne University. He never married, living with his mother until his death in 1976. Vera died a year later.

Despite Little's prowess in combat, as an aviator he was ordinary at best, enduring a number of crash-landings. What gave him his edge as a fighter pilot was his quite exceptional eyesight, excellent marksmanship, and willingness to single-handedly take on entire enemy formations and close in on his prey, down to twenty-five yards on occasion, before opening fire. His armourers calculated that he fired an average of forty-four rounds per aerial victory. The audacity with which he would, single-handed, attack large enemy formations brought the advantage of surprise. Twice he actually struck enemy aircraft in his eagerness to close the range.

Fellow Naval 8 Squadron member Reggie Soar recalled, "Although not a polished pilot, he was one of the most aggressive ... an outstanding shot with both revolver and rifle ...", while ace Robert Comptson described Little as "not so much a leader as a brilliant lone hand ... Small in stature, with face set grimly, he seemed the epitome of deadliness".

His appetite for air fighting was insatiable. When not sharpening his eye on the airfield's rabbits with a .22 rifle, he would lead offensive patrols with scant regard for danger. On one occasion he attacked a particularly effective German Flak battery near La Bassee by flying in at 7000 feet, spiralling earthwards in a controlled 'falling leaf’ spin and finally flattening out at very near ground level to scatter the amazed gunners with machine-gun fire and then hedge-hop home. He pushed his luck and aircraft to the limit, preferring to fire at cricket-pitch range, often noted as diving faster than colleagues who had justified concerns for the Triplane’s fragility. He’d been known to land behind Allied lines to clear a jammed Vickers machine gun before resuming the solo hunt.

Many who knew him saw a sensitive side, however, Soar noting that in addition to his skill with guns, Little was "also a collector of wild flowers". Squadron commander Raymond Collishaw, who would finish the war as the RNAS' top-scoring ace, summed up Little as "an outstanding character, bold, aggressive and courageous, yet he was gentle and kindly. A resolute and brave man."

After the War, his former Commanding Officer eulogised him in the squadron history Naval Eight: ‘Little was just an average sort of pilot, with tremendous bravery. Air fighting seemed to him to be just a gloriously exhilarating sport…he never ceased to look for trouble, and in combat his dashing methods, close range fire and deadly aim made him a formidable opponent, and he was the most chivalrous of warriors. As a man, he was a most lovable character.’

Robert Alexander Little - 06

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