Henry Mills, a former varsity foot ball player for Dartmouth University, entered service in World War II with the Royal Canadian Air Force, flying out of England with the Eagle Squadrons. He transferred to the U.S. Army Air Forces in 1942, becoming an ACE, credited with shooting down 6 enemy aircraft in aerial combat, before he was himself shot down, captured, and held as a prisoner of war. He escaped captivity in March 1945, returning to England.