USAAC 2Lt. Robert William Masling was born on August 31, 1921 in Monroe, Ouachita Parish, Louisiana, the son of Walter John Malsing (1871-1925) and Cordelia Stokes (1884-1938). His father supported his family as a carpenter and later building houses until his death in 1924. In 1938, Robert's mother passed away from pneumonia leaving his brother Millard S. Masling as his only point of contact. Although Robert had no known contact with Pensacola, his brother Millard did. Millard and his wife were living here in 1945 while he was a TSgt with the US Army Air Corps. Because of this, some records indicate falsely that he was from Pensacola.
While Robert was a co-pilot of a C-47 assigned to the 43rd Troop Carrier Squadron of the 315th Troop Carrier Group flying out of Buckinghamshire, England. At the same time, his brother Millard was nearby flying 35 bombing missions as a radio operator. A third brother, Clifton Orvel "Clifford" had died from a non-battle issue in January 1942 while with the 204th Coast Anti-aircraft artillery in San Antonio.
As for Robert, his unit's main purpose was to transport troops to include dropping paratroopers into occupied territory during the invasions of Normandy and Holland. On March 4, 1945, they were flying back from a mission to Brussels when they encountered bad weather while approaching the Buckinghamshire airfield. Whether from the weather or from battle damage may never be known, but nonetheless they crashed killing everyone on board. Robert was buried in the Cambridge Military Cemetery along with his pilot 2Lt. Charles V. Smith Jr. The flight engineer Winfield Scott (1923-1945) was brought home and buried in the Buck Creek United Methodist Church Cemetery in Sylania, Screven County, Georgia. And last, was SSGT David Shelley Francis (1923-1945) who was buried after the war in the Holloway Cemetery in Sherman, Texas.
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