Melvin L. Kliss of the 492nd Bomb Group

Melvin Louis Kliss was born January 6, 1922 to Louis and Cora Kliss of Long Beach, California. Kliss lived in Long Beach until he joined the Army Air Force in 1943. Long Beach was a fast growing town adjacent to Los Angeles- in the 1930s, it was an oil boom town, its prosperity hardly affected by the 1933 earthquake that leveled many buildings within the city. As the war began, more than 140,000 residents lived in Long Beach, thousands of whom would go to working in the aircraft or shipbuilding industries during WWII.  Douglas Aircraft Co. opened a massive airplane plant in 1941 that built C-47s, B-17s, and A-20s. The Calship yard opened on Terminal Island in Long Beach in late 1941 and eventually employed 40,000 workers. Long Beach also saw the deportation of thousands of Japanese residents in 1942, many of whom worked in fish canneries along the coast.

Melvin Louis Kliss registered for the draft on February 15, 1942; he was living with his parents at 1941 Dawson St. in Long Beach, California and was working for R.E. Campbell at 7^th St. and Bellflower Road in Long Beach. He gave his measurements as 6' 1” tall, 175 lbs with blue eyes, blonde hair, and a light complexion.

Sergeant Melvin L. Kliss, 856th Bomb Squadron, 492nd Bomb Group

Kliss was drafted and entered the service June 14, 1943 at Los Angeles, California. His residence was listed as Los Angeles Co., California, white, single with no dependents, completed 4 years of high school, and was working as a semi-skilled craneman at Calship the time of entry into the service. California Shipbuilding Corporation (Calship) operated a shipyard on Terminal Island in Los Angeles harbor during the war years building Liberty ships.

Trolley schedule to the Calship Yard
April 1943

Melvin Kliss received training as an aerial gunner and was assigned to a B-24 as a replacement air crew for the 856^th Squadron, 492^nd Bomb Group based at RAF North Pickenham. The 492^nd Bomb Group was part of the all B-24 Second Air Division and had a reputation as a 'hard luck' group. Sergeant Kliss arrived in England sometime in June 1944 as the right waist gunner on Replacement Crew R-14. This crew, also known as the Abernethy Crew, consisted of: Second Lieutenant Curtis A. Abernethy (pilot), Second Lieutenant Jack H. Stanton (co-pilot), Second Lieutenant Richard S. Krear (bombardier-navigator), Sergeant Alfred F. Childs (ball turret gunner), Staff Sergeant Percival G. Prince (top turret gunner), Staff Sergeant Willard E. Hoods (radio operator), Sergeant Ralph J. Carusone (left waist gunner), Sergeant Ralph F. Del Prete (tail gunner). This mission was flown without a navigator. This crew had flown two missions prior to the Kiel mission: aircraft factory at Magdeburg on June 29^th and a German airfield at Beaumont-le-Roger, France on July 4, 1944.

A typical B-24J from the 492nd Bomb Group

The 492^nd BG took part in mission 455 which was a mission that dispatched eight B-24 groups against harbor installations at Kiel, Germany. The group launched 34 ships of which 31 made it to the target; no enemy fighters were encountered on the mission but the mission suffered heavily from flak over Kiel; 100 of the B-24s sustained damage including Kliss' ship; B-24J-145-CO 44-40064 was damaged by flak and ditched in the English Channel. The B-24 had been built by Consolidated Aircraft in San Diego, California; no photo of the ship is available.

Melvin L. Kliss uniform grouping that I acquired over the summer; it includes his dress uniform jacket, wool overcoat, shirt, and Type A-4 flight coveralls. Other items not shown include his B-4 bag and an oxygen mask storage bag. Sergeant Kliss took part in three missions before his B-24 crashed in the North Sea following a raid against Kiel. Sergeant Kliss survived but was so badly injured that his combat career was over; two other airmen on his ship did not survive the ditching. His dress uniform features his sterling aerial gunner wings and three ribbons: Purple Heart, European Campaign ribbon with two stars, and a WWII Victory ribbon. On the left sleeve is one bullion stripe denoting six months of overseas service while on the right sleeve is a patch noting his armaments specialty. 

According to Lt. Stanton, engine No. 3 had developed an oil problem before arriving over the target and the prop had been feathered before the crew bombed their target in Kiel. The crew started to return with the formation, falling slightly behind, but about 30 minutes out from the German coast, engine No. 2 cut out. The crew was directed to toss any extra weight (guns, ammunition, etc.) in an attempt to lighten the aircraft and air-sea rescue was called. The ship had dropped to 5,000 feet and was about 90 miles from the English coast with the rescue boat 30 miles from their position when engine No. 1 ran away and cut out. An SOS message was sent out and the aircraft was ditched about 40 miles east of Yarmouth, England. Lieutenant Abernethy reported that the entire crew was in the designated ditching positions when the ship hit; the ship broke up quickly and the men were scattered about “most of us dazed or in shock.” 

The rescue boat arrived 15 minutes later, arriving at 12:50 P.M. Lieutenant Krear, bombardier, and Sergeant Del Prete, tail gunner, were listed as missing but the rest of the crew was rescued, all suffering bruises or fractures.  A group report attached to the MACR dated September 1944 lists Sergeant Kliss as “L.I.A.” with a date of July 6, 1944; not KIA or MIA; this means lost in action, or unable to return to duty due to injuries suffered.

This image shows a B-24 from the 492nd Bomb Group over Kiel on the July 6, 1944 mission that resulted in the end of Sergeant Kliss' combat tour with the 8th Air Force. 

Melvin Kliss was featured in the June 27, 1945 edition of Frances Langford's Purple Heart Diary, the heading of which read “Just Be Yourself, That's All a Vet Asks.” The Pittsburg Sun-Telegraph issue of June 27, 1945 reported that Sergeant Kliss was recuperating from operational fatigue at the A.A.F. Regional and Convalescent Hospital in Santa Clara, California. His episode was brought about by the traumatic nature of ditching his B-24 during the July 6, 1944 mission against Kiel. 

Lt. Krear was serving as the bombardier on Kliss' crew
and is listed as missing in action.
Pittsburgh Post Gazette July 25, 1944

Kliss thought it was a mistake for civilians to avoid discussing combat experience with returning veterans. “I'm afraid too many home folks are swallowing that tripe, and those dishing it out aren't helping us a bit. How do they know we don't want to talk about what we've been through? I know I do. Hell I don't want anyone to think I'm a problem child. This war has put a lot of things on my chest- things I couldn't put in letters. Talking about them now helps relieve me.” 

Melvin particularly scored those who, instead of listening sympathetically to their experiences, patronizingly switch subjects on them. “I guess they mean well. They probably think they're saving us from being nervous. But they're just making is more nervous than ever. When we feel like shooting the breeze, and common sense will tell you when we're in the mood, for Heaven's sake don't try to stop us. Nothing as important could happen to us for the rest of our lives. What else should we talk about?”

Melvin L. Kliss from his 2016 online obituary. 

Obituary published in South Bay Daily Breeze (Torrance, California) July 19, 2016:

“Melvin Louis Kliss passed away on July 13, 2016 at the age of 94. He was born to Louis and Cora Kliss in Long Beach, California on January 6, 1922. After attending school and spending his childhood in Long Beach, he joined the Army Air Force, 8th Air Force, 492nd Bomber group and served in Europe during World War II.

Mel met Ruth Stout a couple years after returning from the war and they were married in 1948, making a home in San Pedro. They raised two boys: Gary Melvin and Larry Louis Kliss. Mel worked for Southern California Edison for 37 years, and after retiring in 1985, he and Ruth spent their retirement years traveling and enjoying the sights of the world. Mel was an active member of Christ Lutheran Church in San Pedro serving in a number of different capacities. He was also a member of Mended Hearts Chapter 73, Long Beach, Peck Park Senior Center, Anderson Thursday Seniors and the San Pedro Elks Lodge. Mel is survived by his sons, Gary Kliss (Rayeann) and Larry Kliss (Jan), grandson Brian Kliss (Melissa) and twin great granddaughters Ava and Keira, granddaughter Tina Daniel (Ed) and great granddaughter Claire.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Louis and Cora, wife Ruth of 54 years, and brothers Clyde, Al and sister Dorothy. A Christian Memorial service will be held Saturday, July 23 at 3 pm at Green Hills Memorial Chapel, Rancho Palos Verdes.