Flight Officer Ralph Everett Davies

Ralph Everett Davies was born on April 28, 1922 to Roy A and Pearl Davies of Fort Sumner NM. Ralph was raised in Fort Sumner where his father worked in construction. He graduated from Fort Sumner HS in May 1941 and enrolled at NMAMC the following fall to study engineering. After one year in school, he left and enlisted in the USAAF in September 1942. He was in training as a pilot and after receiving his wings was sent to Harding Field in Baton Rouge LA to receive advanced fighter training in the P-47 Thunderbolt fighter. On March 18, 1944 he was flying P-47D #43-25261 as part of a multiship formation when they ran into bad weather. A low pressure zone brought unusually high winds from the north. Out of the flight, three of the ships crashed due to running out of gas while struggling to return to base. His was one of them, going down in West Feliciana Parish, approximately 5 miles from the scene of another crash site. His body was recovered and he was buried in Fort Sumner Cemetery. Flight Officer Ralph Everett Davies was 21 years of age at the time of his death in the service of his nation.