in Italy. Tragically, his P - 47 Thunderbolt went down over the Adriatic Sea while he was leading a group of fighters on one of the 332 nd ’ s bomber escort missions. In a letter from Maples ’ friend 1st Lt. William J. Faulkner to Maples ’ mother, reprinted in The Tuskegee Airmen: The Men Who Changed a Nation , by Charles E. Francis, this loss was attributed to a mechanical problem with Maples ’ aircraft. As his aircraft failed, he radioed the other members of his squadron and requested a fix on his position which would aid rescue and recovery efforts. His last transmission relayed that he planned to bail out as soon as he had descended to a reasonable altitude. Unfortunately, no parachute would appear. Members of his squadron searched the area for signs of him or his plane. There was initially some hope that he would be found, rescued, or perhaps make his own way back to base, but this hope faded with time. While officially missing in action, he was promoted to Captain and awarded the Air Medal, which recognizes single acts of heroism or meritorious achievements while participating in aerial flight. The Army declared him dead in June of 1945 and he was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart. The Florence American Cemetery in Impruneta, Italy, commemorates his service on the Tablets of the Missing. The unit ’ s legendary success, thanks to the exemplary performance and sacrifice of individuals like Captain Maples, contributed greatly to the allied victory and paved the way for future racial integration of units in the military.
Captain Maples was sadly never able to return home to share his experiences. However, his service has been immortalized in his hometown of Orange, Virginia, through the installation of a historical marker near the intersection of W. Church St. and S. Madison Rd., on the grounds of the historic Maples family home site. The marker was officially unveiled in June of 2017, accompanied by fanfare and a fitting flyover of period aircraft facilitated by the Capital Wing of the Commemorative Air Force. In 2021, his portrait was dedicated in the historic Orange County Courthouse. The example of Capt. Maples, aided by these memorials, will inspire generations to come.
Photography Credit: Jeff Poole
Sources:
Commonwealth of Virginia. Department of Historic Resources. Seven New State Historical Highway Markers Approved . Virginia Department of Historic Resources, 29 Dec. 2016. Web. 20 Mar. 2017. <http:// www.dhr.virginia.gov/press_releases/12292016_press_release.html>. Francis, Charles E., and Adolph Caso. The Tuskegee Airmen: The Men Who Changed a Nation . Boston: Branden Pub., 1997. Print. "Interview with Mrs. Doris Walker." Telephone interview. 24 Mar. 2017. Maurer, David A. "Tuskegee Pilot Has Engine Trouble in Mediterranean." The Daily Progress [Charlottesville] 12 Feb. 2017, Lifestyles sec.: C1+. Print. "Tuskegee Airmen History." Tuskegee Airmen Inc. N.p., 2016. Web. 20 Mar. 2017. <http://tuskegeeairmen.org/ explore - tai/a - brief - history/>. United States of America. American Battle Monuments Commission. Andrew Maples Jr. American Battle Monuments Commission, n.d. Web. 20 Mar. 2017. <https://www.abmc.gov/node/530146#>. Walker, Frank S. Echoes of Orange . Orange, VA: Orange County Historical Society, 2013. Print.
For more information about the storied service of the Tuskegee Airmen, please visit www.tuskegeeairmen.org.
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