Ruffo di Calabria returned to military duty before Italy's entry into World War I, and was assigned to the Battaglione Aviatori (which later became the Corpo Aeronautico Militare) on 20 December 1914.
After pilot's training, on 28 September 1915, he was posted to the 4a Squadriglia Artiglia, an artillery coordination unit that later morphed into 44a Squadriglia.
On 26 January 1916, he moved to 2a Squadriglia (later 42a Squadriglia).
He won two Bronze awards of the Medal for Military Valor—in February and April 1916—while still a two-seater pilot with them.
His personal emblem was a black skull and crossbones painted on the fuselage of his plane, whether it was his original Nieuport 11s, or his later Nieuport 17 and SPAD VII airplanes.

Ruffo di Calabria underwent further training on Nieuports at Cascina Costa in May 1916.
On 26 June, he was assigned to 1a Squadriglia as a fighter pilot.
He won his first victory there, shared with Francesco Baracca on 23 August 1916, and had a second one go unconfirmed.
His performance was good for a Silver Medal for Military Valor in August, followed by a Bronze in September 1916.

By 16 September, when he shared a victory with Baracca and Luigi Olivari, he was scoring for his new unit, 70a Squadriglia.
He ran his score with them to four confirmed and four unconfirmed by 28 February 1917.

In March 1917, he was transferred out of the reserves when he was promoted to Tenente.
In May he then switched to flying a Nieuport for 91a Squadriglia.
He was awarded both a Silver and a Bronze Medal for Military Valor that same month.
His promotion to Capitano came through in August 1917.
By that time, his confirmed victories totaled 13.
He ended 1917 with his total victories at 16.

Ruffo di Calabria's records for 1918 are incomplete, but credit him with four more victories.
On 5 May 1918, he was granted the ultimate Medal of Military Valor, the Gold award.
After Baracca's death on 19 June 1918, Fulco assumed command of the renowned "Squadron of Aces".
He relinquished command of 91a Squadriglia on 18 September to Ferruccio Ranza, after suffering a nervous breakdown.
After recovery, he was handed command of 10th Gruppo, on 23 October 1918, but was shot down by artillery fire near Marano on 29 October 1918.
In the end, he shot down 20 enemy airplanes in 53 combats, making him the fifth highest scoring Italian flying ace of World War I.
Ruffo di Calabria returned to military duty before Italy's entry into World War I, and was assigned to the Battaglione Aviatori (which later became the Corpo Aeronautico Militare) on 20 December 1914. After pilot's training, on 28 September 1915, he was posted to the 4a Squadriglia Artiglia, an artillery coordination unit that later morphed into 44a Squadriglia. On 26 January 1916, he moved to 2a Squadriglia (later 42a Squadriglia). He won two Bronze awards of the Medal for Military Valor—in February and April 1916—while still a two-seater pilot with them. His personal emblem was a black skull and crossbones painted on the fuselage of his plane, whether it was his original Nieuport 11s, or his later Nieuport 17 and SPAD VII airplanes.
Ruffo di Calabria underwent further training on Nieuports at Cascina Costa in May 1916. On 26 June, he was assigned to 1a Squadriglia as a fighter pilot. He won his first victory there, shared with Francesco Baracca on 23 August 1916, and had a second one go unconfirmed. His performance was good for a Silver Medal for Military Valor in August, followed by a Bronze in September 1916.
By 16 September, when he shared a victory with Baracca and Luigi Olivari, he was scoring for his new unit, 70a Squadriglia. He ran his score with them to four confirmed and four unconfirmed by 28 February 1917.
In March 1917, he was transferred out of the reserves when he was promoted to Tenente. In May he then switched to flying a Nieuport for 91a Squadriglia. He was awarded both a Silver and a Bronze Medal for Military Valor that same month. His promotion to Capitano came through in August 1917. By that time, his confirmed victories totaled 13. He ended 1917 with his total victories at 16.
Ruffo di Calabria's records for 1918 are incomplete, but credit him with four more victories. On 5 May 1918, he was granted the ultimate Medal of Military Valor, the Gold award. After Baracca's death on 19 June 1918, Fulco assumed command of the renowned "Squadron of Aces". He relinquished command of 91a Squadriglia on 18 September to Ferruccio Ranza, after suffering a nervous breakdown. After recovery, he was handed command of 10th Gruppo, on 23 October 1918, but was shot down by artillery fire near Marano on 29 October 1918. In the end, he shot down 20 enemy airplanes in 53 combats, making him the fifth highest scoring Italian flying ace of World War I.
Fulco Ruffo di Calabria