Martin James Mullane was born on March 21, 1917 in Alliance, Nebraska, his mother was Willa Mae Brumbaugh, he had one brother and grew up with stepfather Christian Ludy.
He also had two younger half-sisters and was married to Blanch Mullane.

Martin enlisted in the USAAF, and after flight school became a B-24 pilot with the 704th Bomber Squadron, 446th Bomb Group based at RAF Bungay.
On October 19, 1944, he was the pilot of B-24J 42-50681 “Slightly Dangerous” on a bombing mission to Mainz, Germany.

After dropping their bombs, they were hit by flak and fell out of formation with an engine out, all of the crewmembers bailed out to be taken prisoner except for Martin who stayed at the controls.
The Germans found his body in the wreckage of the B-24 and buried him.

Postwar the remains of 1Lt Martin Mullane were recovered from Germany and reburied at the Netherlands American Cemetery and Memorial in Margraten, Netherlands - Plot F Row 5 Grave 3.

Flown during World War II by Lt. Harrison B. "Bud" Tordoff with the 352nd Fighter Squadron, 353rd Fighter Group, 8th Air Force (based in Raydon, England).