Manfred von Richthofen, the son of a Prussian noble had been in the cavalry until 1915. It was then that he switched over to the Imperial Air Service and began terrorizing the skies.
In 1917, he switched from an Albatross biplane to a Fokker triplane. He had the plane painted completely red, in honor of his old cavalry regiment. The plane earned him the nickname, The Red Baron.
With 80 victories under his belt, he was by far the greatest pilot in WWI. But on April 21, he went too far behind enemy lines, and was shot down. British troops recovered his body, and at the age of 25, he was buried with full military honors.
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