Maurice was born in July 1924 in Hackney, London to Russian born Michael who worked as an upholsterer and Rebecca née Rubinstein. Maurice had one sister Mavis who married Morris Whycer.

Maurice was the flight engineer on Lancaster LM465 which departed RAF Mildenhall at 23.15 on a bombing operation against the Nordstern synthetic oil plant at Gelsenkirchen in Germany. The aircraft was intercepted and shot down by a night-fighter crashing 2 km SW of Meerlo in the Dutch Province of Limburg. Six of the crew were killed and Flight Sergeant JM Trend evaded.

Pilot, Carlton Stewart Thompson RCAF.
F/E, Maurice Bernard Pelham
Nav, Roderick McMillan RCAF
A/B, Flt Sgt Ronald George Lemky RCAF
A/G, Sgt Thomas Edward Stubbs
A/G, Sgt Richard Sidney Mobbs
W/Op, Jack Melville Trend, 1397945 (Evaded)