Top pilot owing money for America’s secret weapon (3,2,3,4)
I believe the answer is:
ace in the hole
'secret weapon' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
'top pilot owing money for america's' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'top' could be 'ace' (ace can informally mean very good) and 'ace' is present in the answer.
'owing' could be 'inthehole' (I've seen this in another clue) and 'inthehole' is found within the answer.
No letters remain.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for ace in the hole that I've seen before include "Surprise up one's sleeve, from the game of poker" , "Hidden and powerful advantage" .)
