384th BGHA - 2nd Lt. Max Jean Miller Crew

2nd Lt. Max Jean Miller Crew

Shot down: April 13, 1944

Mannheim, Germany

B-17G 42-31048 | Courtesy of Quentin Bland and 384thBombGroup.com⇗

On April 13, 1944, the 384th Bomb Group flew their 89th combat mission to the ball-bearing plant in Schweinfurt, Germany. This day was the Group's largest single-mission loss. Of the 27 aircraft assigned to this mission, nine were lost. Among those flying that day were 2nd Lt. Max Jean Miller (Pilot, 545th Bomb Squadron) and his crew flying on B-17G 42-31048⇗.

The Miller crew was positioned in the low squadron of the lead group. Just prior to the attack, S/Sgt. Albert Krizner (Tail Gunner) said "It's a lovely day" to S/Sgt. Edwin Pierce Fulkerson (Waist Gunner). Moments later, 15 Focke-Wulf 190s initiated a head-on strike. The enemy flew through the formation with such proximity that Phillip Nathan Bennett Jr.⇗ noted in the day's Special Pro Report⇗ that he could see their faces.

In the ensuing attack that lasted just three minutes, one-third of the Group's assigned crews were lost.

2nd Lt. Max Miller and his crew were among those lost in the attack. Ken Decker noted in his book, Memories of the 384th Bombardment Group that "[It] was so swift and quick that there were no witnesses to their plane going down." S/Sgt. Fulkerson described the impact in MACR 3866⇗, stating, "Our plane was hit by 20 milimeters coming down center of fuselage. Wings and tail went down so quick that if not hit, the boys couldn't get out unless they had chutes on as I did."

2nd Lt. Max Jean Miller (Pilot)

Courtesy of Find a Grave

2nd Lt. James Edgar Dent

(Co-Pilot)

Courtesy of Find a Grave

2nd Lt. Theophilus Edward Beinar (Navigator)

Courtesy of Quentin Bland and 384thBombGroup.com⇗

F/O Darrell Clark Getty (Bombardier)

Courtesy of Quentin Bland and 384thBombGroup.com⇗

T/Sgt. Elvie Lawrence Rodden (Engineer/Top Turret Gunner)

Courtesy of Find a Grave

S/Sgt. Albert Patrick Krizner

(Tail Gunner)

Courtesy of Find a Grave

During the fire, S/Sgt. Fulkerson also noted in the MACR that he saw his crewmate, S/Sgt. Howard Rudolph LeConey (Waist Gunner) lying on the floor. Fulkerson threw a parachute on his chest, however, LeConey did not respond. S/Sgt. Fulkerson was captured and taken prisoner of war at Stalag XVII-B.

The only other survivor of the crew was 2nd Lt. Darrell Clark Getty (Bombardier), who was not a regular member of this crew. After a 20mm shell shattered his leg, the force of a subsequent explosion blew him from the aircraft. He regained consciousness while falling, opened his chute, and was captured. His injuries were so severe, that his leg had to be amputated by German doctors. In Memories of the 384th Bombardment Group, Getty noted the repetition of the numbers seven and thirteen during his time in the service; it was his 7th mission, flown on the 13th, and resulted in 13 months of captivity in an unspecified camp.

The losses of April 13 were the heaviest sustained by the 384th Bomb Group in a single combat mission, and it remains a significant point in the Group’s history. Of the ten men on board B-17G 42-31048, eight were killed by the enemy fighter attacks, and the B-17 crashed near Mannheim. The loss was felt deeply by the airmen who served alongside the Miller crew and the families they left behind.

We honor and remember:

2nd Lt. Max Jean Miller⇗, Age: 22 (Pilot, KIA)

Hometown: Denver, Colorado

Missions flown: 12

Resting place: Union Cemetery, Bakersfield, California

2nd Lt. James Edgar Dent Jr.⇗, Age: 26 (Co-Pilot, KIA)

Hometown: Jackson, Tennessee

Missions flown: 8

Resting place: Ardennes American Cemetery, Belgium: Plot A, Row 8, Grave 12

2nd Lt. Theophilus Edward Beinar⇗, Age: 24 (Navigator, KIA)

Hometown: Worcester, Massachusetts

Missions flown: 20