Ralph E. Odenwald entered military service in Minnesota. He served in the 359th Fighter Squadron, 356th Fighter Group, as a First Lieutenant and Pilot during World War II.

Ralph was declared Missing in Action on a camera gunnery mission on February 4, 1945. He split-essed at 13,000 ft. and as he was pulling out of it, he apparently rolled and started another split-ess. His aircraft disappeared through the overcast and was not seen again by the other members of his element, nor were they able to contact him by radio. A P-51 was later reported to have gone into the water at Bradwell Bay, England, at approximately the time that Lt. Odenwald was last seen. His plane presumably went down on the English Channel. No wreckage was ever recovered.

1Lt Odenwalds' name is memorialized in the Tablets of the Missing, Cambridge American Cemetery, Cambridge, United Kingdom. He has a cenotaph located in the Atna Cemetery in Minnesota.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, www.abmc.gov, www.americanairmuseum.com