Richard Miller was born on March 2, 1916, in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He enlisted in the Aviation Cadet Program of the U.S. Army Air Corps on February 25, 1939, but was eliminated from the program in April 1939. He re-enlisted in the Aviation Cadet Program for Bombardier training on May 29, 1941, and was commissioned a 2LT on December 16, 1941. Miller was selected for the Doolittle Mission in February 1942. He was the Bombardier on the second B-25 to take off from the aircraft carrier USS Hornet on April 18, 1942, and after bombing Tokyo his crew flew to China and crash landed with no injuries. After the raid, Capt Miller was assigned to the 319th Bomb Group in North Africa, and he was killed in action on January 22, 1943. Richard Miller was buried at the Lindenwood Cemetery in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

His Distinguished Flying Cross Citation reads:

For extraordinary achievement while participating in a highly destructive raid on the Japanese mainland on April 18, 1942. First Lieutenant Miller volunteered for this mission knowing full well that the chances of survival were extremely remote, and executed his part in it with great skill and daring. This achievement reflects high credit on First Lieutenant Miller and the military service.