He was serving in the Hellenic Army as an artillery officer and when the Germans occupied northern Greece, he vanished to Mount Athos and from there to Egypt where he fought on the Allied side. His very first mission of his military career began in June 1941 when the Greek Army landed in the Middle East. From there, he participated in various battles such as the First and Second Battles of El Alamein in 1942 and later the Battle of Rimini and Dekemvriana in 1944.