Captain Ritter was the pilot of a F-84E Thunderjet fighter with the 111th Fighter Bomber Squadron, 136th Fighter Bomber Wing. On 1 October 1951, while on a combat mission, two MiG-15s attacked his flight of four F-84s. After his aircraft was hit, he bailed out. He was listed as Missing in Action and was presumed dead on 16 June 1954. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.

Ritter was awarded the Air Medal with 4 Oak Leaf Clusters, the Purple Heart, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal.