Brigadier General Ferruccio Ranza began his military career as a World War I flying ace

Flying ace

A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more...

 credited with seventeen confirmed victories and eight unconfirmed ones. Postwar, he rose to command of several area commands of the resurgent Italian air force. He served through the end of World War II.

World War I service

Ranza was an engineer when World War I broke out, being assigned on 8 November 1914 as a lieutenant in 1st Engineer Regiment. He attended the flight school at Venaria. His first assignment, on 14 October 1915, was to 43a Squadriglia to fly reconnaissance missions. He won a Bronze award of the Medal for Military Valor for carrying out an artillery spotting mission under fire.

However, Ranza had no success in aerial warfare until he transitioned to Nieuport

Nieuport

Nieuport, later Nieuport-Delage, was a French aeroplane company that primarily built racing aircraft before World War I and fighter aircraft during World War I and between the wars.-Beginnings:...

s and joined 77a Squadriglia on 22 June 1916. Five days later, flying a Nieuport 11

Nieuport 11

|-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Angelucci, Enzio, ed. The Rand McNally Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft. New York: The Military Press, 1983. ISBN 0-517-41021-4....

, he downed a Hansa-Brandenburg C.I

Hansa-Brandenburg C.I

-See also:-References:# Munson, Kenneth - Bombers, Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft 1914 - 1919 ISBN 0 7537 0918 X# # # -External links:* ....

. On 14 September 1916, he shot down a seaplane and received another Bronze award. By 25 November, he had four confirmed wins and one unconfirmed. He made another unconfirmed claim on 4 April 1917.

Fulco Ruffo di Calabria

Fulco Ruffo di Calabria

Fulco VIII, Prince Ruffo di Calabria, 6th Duke of Guardia Lombarda was an Italian World War I flying ace, and posthumous father-in-law of King Albert II of the Belgians.-Background:...

 was removed from command of 91a Squadriglia because of combat fatigue; Ranza was appointed to succeed him in command, on 1 May 1917, while still flying with 77a Squadriglia through June. Ranza scored again on 23 June 1917, and would continue to score through the end of the war, with his last claims being two unconfirmed victories on 29 October 1918. In the process, he was promoted to captain and won three Silver awards of the Medal for Military Valor, the Serbian Order of the Star of Karageorge, four war crosses (two Italian, one French, one Belgian), and the Military Order of Savoy.

Post World War I

Ranza stayed in the Italian Air Force. In February 1924, he took command of the 13th Group. In April 1927, he stepped up to command of 2nd Wing. He rose to command of Italian air assets in Tripolitania, then returned to Italy as Chief of Staff for 1st Zone Air Place. From January to September 1935, he returned to Italian East Africa

Italian East Africa

Italian East Africa was an Italian colonial administrative subdivision established in 1936, resulting from the merger of the Ethiopian Empire with the old colonies of Italian Somaliland and Italian Eritrea. In August 1940, British Somaliland was conquered and annexed to Italian East Africa...

 as a Brigadier General. In 1939, he moved to become Air Officer Commanding in Albania. The following year, he was appointed AOC Southern Italy. Ranza retired on 29 January 1945.

Reference

• Nieuport Aces of World War 1. Norman Franks. Osprey Publishing, 2000. ISBN 1855329611, 9781855329614.
• SPAD XII/XIII Aces of World War I. Jon Guttman, Osprey Publishing, 2002. ISBN 1841763160, 9781841763163.