Sergeant Maples was a crew member of a B-29A Superfortress Bomber with the 28th Bomber Squadron, 19th Bomber Wing. On 7 July 1953, as the aircraft was returning from a bombing mission, it crashed during the landing approach to Pohang Air Base (K-3). All thirteen airmen were killed.

Maples was awarded the Purple Heart, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal.