Gilley Terrell Brand was born on September 18, 1918, in Hamilton County, Tennessee. He was the son of Dwightmon Brand and Jessie A. Gilley Brand. He was married to Elizabeth Davis Brand. He attended Central High School in Chattanooga, Tennessee, before continuing his education at the University of Chattanooga. Before entering military service, Brand worked as a knitter at a hosiery mill. He was drafted into the U.S. Army and enlisted on February 20, 1942. He served in the 786th Bomber Squadron, 466th Bomb Group, Heavy, as a Second Lieutenant and Pilot of B-24H #41-29416, nicknamed “Rebel Yell,” during World War II.

On March 22, 1944, the ''Rebel Yell'' was piloted by 2Lt Gilley Terrell Brand, departed RAF Attlebridge in Norfolk, England, on the 466th Bombardment Group's first combat mission of World War II. The aircraft was assigned to the 786th Bombardment Squadron and participated in an Eighth Air Force operation involving 214 B-24 Liberators from the 2nd Air Division and 474 B-17 Flying Fortresses from the 1st and 3rd Air Divisions. The primary objectives were aircraft manufacturing facilities at Oranienburg and Basdorf, Germany, but heavy cloud cover forced most of the bombers to attack the secondary target of Berlin. At approximately 1:30 p.m., during the bombing run and reportedly just 15 seconds before bomb release, Rebel Yell collided in midair with B-24H #41-29434, nicknamed Terry and the Pirates and piloted by Second Lieutenant William J. Terry. Accounts differ regarding which aircraft initially sustained damage from German anti-aircraft fire. Eyewitnesses described one bomber flying inverted and another struggling to remain airborne after losing part of its tail assembly before rolling over and entering an uncontrollable spin. Both aircraft were destroyed, with Rebel Yell reportedly crashing near Malz and Schweinerhütte, approximately five miles northeast of Oranienburg, Germany. Of the 214 B-24s dispatched, 197 successfully attacked their assigned targets, while five failed to return, including the two aircraft destroyed in the collision. Eight of the ten crew members aboard Rebel Yell, including Brand, were killed in action, while the remaining two survived and became prisoners of war.

2Lt Brand was killed in action and is buried at Zachary Taylor National Cemetery in Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky. He shares a collective burial site with five of his fellow crew members: 2Lt Paul Brill, Sgt Kenneth Cassada, SSgt Edwin K. Lankford, 2Lt Glenn W. Morris Jr., and Sgt Frank D. Pfeiffer.

Sources of information: www.findagrave.com, www.fold3.com