Francis James Ralph

Second Lieutenant Francis James Ralph (9 December 1892 – 3 September 1918) was a British World War I ace credited with 13 confirmed aerial victories over German fighter aircraft while flying as an aerial observer.

Early life Francis James Ralph was born in Cheltenham on 9 December 1892. After completion of his education, and his marriage, he worked as a draughtsman for the Co-op Gas Company in Thurlaston, Leicestershire, from 1910 until his enlistment in 1915.

Military career From cadet he was appointed a temporary second lieutenant (on probation) on 12 February 1918, on the General List to serve in the Royal Flying Corps. He was confirmed in his rank as an observer officer on 27 May, by which time the Army's Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service had merged to form the Royal Air Force. By then Ralph was already serving as a gunner/observer in the rear seat of a Bristol F.2 Fighter in No. 20 Squadron, as on 9 May, flying with pilot Lieutenant David Smith, he had gained his first victory, shooting down in flames a Fokker Dr.I west of Lille. The next day, he was wounded in action; his pilot flew him back to base.

Ralph was originally buried in the Cemetery of the Military Hospital at Dury, near Amiens, but in 1927 his remains were exhumed and re-interred at the Military Cemetery at Villers-Bretonneux.