Carl Patterson

Admiral Carl Patterson, who also went by the nickname of Buster, was a UNSC naval officer and commander of the UNSC Stalingrad and of Battlegroup Stalingrad. Patterson was a very straightforward Admiral whose direct forward-assault style cost him his life in the middle of the Battle of Onyx.

His ship was one of eight sent to Onyx to rescue the Spartan-IIs and Dr. Catherine Halsey. He was supposed to receive full information on the planet from the prowler Dusk before attacking the planet, but Patterson chose instead to order a forward attack before the entire planet was scanned. His fleet destroyed the two Covenant destroyers they found before the other twenty Covenant ships that had been on the other side of the planet showed up. At the cost of four of his eight ships, Patterson was able to escape.

He set up an ambush for the Covenant ships behind the planet's moon using HORNET Mines, which succeeded in destroying almost all of the ships. Patterson again ordered a forward charge to wipe out the rest. Thirty-two more Covenant ships emerged from Slipspace around his ships in mid-charge, massacring them all and killing Patterson.