Royce, Ralph

Royce, Ralph

(1890–1965) aviator; born in Marquette, Mich. The son of a bookkeeper, he graduated from West Point in 1914, and during the Mexican expedition of 1916, he flew in the first U.S. military air operations. He held a series of operational commands in the 1920s and 1930s. In 1944, after serving in England, the Pacific, and the Middle East, he commanded U.S. tactical air forces in Europe. After leaving the service, he became director of economic development for the state of Michigan.