Glenn Miller

On this day in history, December 15, 1944, trombonist and legendary big band leader Captain Glenn Miller, the biggest star of the American pop-music scene in the years directly before World War II and a man who set aside his dazzling career right at its pinnacle in 1942 to serve America as leader of the United States of America Air Force (USAAF) dance band, boarded a single-engine aircraft at an airfield outside London on December 15, 1944. This plane would go missing over the English Channel en route to France for a complimentary concert for American troops that had recently assisted in the liberation of Paris.

It would be hard to exaggerate the level of Glenn Miller’s success in the years prior to America’s entry into World War II. Though he was a moderately understated instrumentalist himself – he had played trombone in various high-profile orchestras but was never noteworthy himself as a performer – Miller, the bandleader, came to the lead the latter portion of the swing era on the power of his well-organized arrangements and an innovation in orchestration that put the high-pitched clarinet on the melody line doubled by the saxophone section an octave below. This trademark sound helped the Glenn Miller Orchestra earn an unparalleled string of popular hits from 1939 to 1942, including the well-known versions of songs like “In the Mood” (1939), “Tuxedo Junction” (1939), and “Chattanooga Choo Choo” (1941), as well as Miller’s signature tune, “Moonlight Serenade” (1939). In four years, Miller scored 16 number-one records and 69 top-10 hits, more than Elvis Presley (40) and the Beatles in their careers. His musical legacy includes numerous recordings in the Grammy Hall of Fame. His work has been performed by swing, jazz, and big bands globally for over 75 years.

The Glenn Miller Orchestra conducted its last-ever concert under Miller’s leadership on September 27, 1942, in Passaic, New Jersey, and directly after that, Miller joined the Army. After two years stateside broadcasting a weekly radio program called I Sustain The Wings out of New York City, Miller created a new 50-piece USAAF dance band and left for England in mid-1944, giving hundreds of performances to Allied troops over the next six months before going on his ominous trip to France on this day in 1944.

Miller was waiting for a flight on December 13, but it was canceled due to inclement weather in France. His reservation on December 14 was also canceled. Miller became frustrated and impatient, fearing that he would not make it in time to go with his band to France. Miller learned that a colleague, Lieutenant Colonel Norman Baessell from the Eighth Air Force Service Command, was flying to France on December 15. It was to be onboard a Noorduyn UC-64A Norseman allocated to him and piloted by Flight Officer John Morgan. Baessell asked Miller to join them.

Miller’s travel orders did not allow him to board a “casual” flight, nor did he report his plans to his chain of command, so SHAEF was in the dark regarding Miller’s location. At 1:45 p.m., Morgan landed at Twinwood Field, boarded Baessell and Miller, and took off at 1:55 p.m. The UC-64 and its passengers were never seen again. Theories proliferate as to why the plane took off in the extremely foggy weather that day. England was “socked in,” and their Paris terminus was also.

Some believe Lieutenant Colonel Baessell, a “fixer” for Miller who planned gigs, hotels, and so on, coerced Morgan to take off despite the hazard. No one knows if he intimidated Morgan or promised him some treats in Paris, but neither was beyond Baessell, according to those who knew him.

 The Noorduyn UC-64 “Norseman” plane carrying Miller took off from Twinwood airfield, 61 miles north of London, at 1:55 p.m. Their flight plan demanded they fly along the “SHAEF corridor” named for Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force), the main guarded route for transport planes flying from England to France.

It was scheduled to arrive in Paris between 3:45 p.m. and 3:51 p.m. Royal Air Force spotters saw the plane starting over the Channel at 2:37 p.m., on course and on time. Miller’s plane was never seen again.

The most likely scenario is that in the fog, Morgan became “spatially disoriented,” meaning that he did not know his altitude and bearing for a short period. A pilot experiencing this often ignores or dismisses his instruments or cannot view them.

In the fog, Morgan likely became confused – his brain told him things that were not so or gave him incomplete information, and he crashed into the Channel, thinking he was much higher than the sea.

The following day, the Battle of the Bulge began. The Eighth Air Force and SHAEF only realized that UC-64 with Miller aboard was missing three days later, on Monday, December 18, 1944.

No wreckage or bodies were ever found, so very little information is available to inform us about what occurred.

Upon realizing the airplane and Miller were missing, a search and investigation were ordered. Meanwhile, Miller’s unit had flown safely from England to France aboard three C-47 transports and prepared to begin their broadcasting and concert obligations. Because they were scheduled for a Christmas Day broadcast from Paris to England and via shortwave to the United States, news of Miller’s whereabouts would have to be released. American Air Force (AAF) Headquarters in Washington, D.C., notified Miller’s wife, Helen, of his disappearance on December 23, 1944. On December 24, 1944, SHAEF announced Miller’s disappearance to the press, stressing that no members of his unit were with him aboard the missing plane.

The Major Glenn Miller Army Air Forces Orchestra appeared as scheduled on December 25, 1944, conducted by Jerry Gray. The unit continued to broadcast and appear throughout Europe through V-E Day until August 1945. It received a Unit Citation from General Eisenhower.

In keeping with standard procedures for the U.S. military services, Miller was officially declared dead a year and a day later. Since his body was not recovered, Miller was permitted to have a memorial headstone placed at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia. In February 1945, Glenn Miller was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star Medal.

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