Ralph Cochrane

Air Chief Marshal Sir Ralph Alexander Cochrane, (24 February 1895 – 17 December 1977) was a Scottish aviator and Royal Air Force officer, perhaps best known for his role in Operation Chastise, the famous "Dambusters" raid.

Early life Ralph Cochrane was born on 24 February 1895, the youngest son of Thomas Cochrane, 1st Baron Cochrane of Cults, in the Scottish village of Springfield, Fife. To qualify as a naval officer, he joined the Royal Naval College, Osborne in 1908, and the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, two years later. On 15 September 1912, he was commissioned into the Royal Navy as a midshipman.

First World War During the First World War, Cochrane served in the Royal Naval Air Service piloting airships. He also completed a tour as a staff officer in the Admiralty's Airship Department. Cochrane commanded the Dam-Busters raid. There was intense, sometimes openly hostile, rivalry between Cochrane and Air Vice Marshal Don Bennett, who saw Cochrane's experimentation with low-level target marking through 617 Squadron in 1944 as a direct threat to his own specialist squadrons' reputation. In the New Year Honours 1943 Cochrane was invested as a Companion of the Order of the Bath (Military Division). In the 1945 New Year Honours list he was invested as a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire. In the 1948 King's Birthday Honours he was invested as a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath. In the 1950 King's Birthday Honours, he was invested as a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire. A road at the Hobsonville airbase was named after Cochrane. A nearby gully also bears his name.

Dates of rank Rank Date Role Wing commander 1933 Acting group captain 1937 On secondment to RNZAF Group captain 1938 Air commodore (temporary) 1940 Air marshal (acting) 1945 Air marshal 1946 Air chief marshal 1949