Born Robert Herbert Miller in 1923 at Indiana to Mary Rose Grunert Miller (1883–1952).

Class of June 1941 Richmond High School, Indiana.

Worked in the composing room of the Palladium-Item Newspaper, before going to the International Harvester Company.

Enlisted (ASN: 15375251) as a Private in the Army Air Corps on 10 December 1942 at Patterson Field near Fairfield in Greene County, Ohio.

He was selected for the aviation cadet program and assigned to Maxwell Field, Alabama for pre-flight training. He went on to next complete Primary and Basic flight training.

In April 1944, he graduated from Advanced two-engine flight training at Moody Field near Valdosta, Georgia; and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant (ASN: O-829060) in the USAAF.

Subsequently, he underwent B-29 aircraft transition and operational combat crew training, and was assigned to Aircrew A-41 at Pratt Army Air Field, Kansas.

In October 1944, he deployed from Mather Field, California (with re-fueling stops at Hawaii and Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands) to the central pacific theatre of operations and was assigned to 20th Air Force, XXI Bomber Command, 73rd Bomb Wing, 497th Bombardment Group (VH), 871st Bomber Squadron stationed at Isely Field on Saipan in the Mariana Islands.

On 19 February 1945, he flew in the right seat as a Pilot aboard a Boeing B-29 Superfortress nicknamed “Jokers Wild II” tail code A-square-41 (serial #42-24857).

A-SQ-41 was one of 150 Superforts launched in a multi-group formation to bombard Target #357; the Musashino Engine Works of the Nakajima Aircraft Company near Tokyo, Japan. After a flight of approximately seven hours and some 1,200 nautical miles, his aircraft reached their check-point above Mount Fuji on the main island of Honshu, and began their bomb-run north-east towards Tokyo.

While over the target area, enemy opposition from fighters and anti-aircraft artillery (AAA) was described as moderate with thick cloud cover. However, while enroute back to Saipan, they were forced to ditch due to lack of fuel caused by battle damage received over Tokyo.

At approximately 2100hrs they crash landed in rough seas about 9 miles off Agrihan Island, with the bomber breaking into two pieces and quickly sinking. They were last sighted by B-29 aircrew T-SQ-3 of the 873rd Bomb Squadron at a geographic position of North latitude 17-degrees +55-minutes and East longitude 145-degrees +30 minutes (about 400 kilometers north of Saipan).

Ref: MACR 12486 (Austin aircrew):

Flight Engineer: 35046268Linus Henry Burns SSgt OHIO

SSgt Linus Henry Burns (1920-1945) - Find a Grave Memorial

RADAR: 36835694Alphonse Edward Elewaut Cpl WISC

CPL Alphonse E Elewaut (1918-1945) - Find a Grave Memorial

Left Blister Aerial Gunner: 31375224Richard Henry Hanson Cpl NH

CPL Richard H Hanson (1922-1945) - Find a Grave Memorial

Tail Gunner: 34831364Robert E Jackson Cpl Clarkesville, GA

CPL Robert E Jackson (1921-1945) - Find a Grave Memorial

Pilot (right seat): O-829060Robert Herbert Miller 2Lt IND

2Lt Robert Herbert Miller (1923-1945) - Find a Grave Memorial

Navigator: 2061056Cyril Franklin Russell, Jr. 2Lt TEXAS

2Lt Cyril Franklin Russell Jr. (1925-1945) - Find a Grave Memorial

Bombardier: 2065455Chester Joseph Wier 2Lt WISC

2LT Chester J Wier (unknown-1945) - Find a Grave Memorial

Robert H Miller