James William Sweaney

Military

Co-pilot, Sunde crew. 381st BG, 535th BS. Shot down 1 December 1943 in B-17 #42-31097 'Mission Belle'. Mission #46 to the chemical factory at Leverkusen, Germany. MACR 1661. Prisoner of War at Stalag Luft 1.

Riverside, CA

Connections

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Units served with

The insignia of the 381st Bomb Group.
  • Unit Hierarchy: Group
  • Air Force: Eighth Air Force
  • Type Category: Bombardment

People

  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 381st Bomb Group 535th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 32410832
  • Highest Rank: Sergeant
  • Role/Job: Radio Operator / Gunner
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 381st Bomb Group 535th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 17065322 and O-739541
  • Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
  • Role/Job: Navigator
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 381st Bomb Group 534th Bomb Squadron 535th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 35722592
  • Highest Rank: Sergeant
  • Role/Job: waist gunner
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 381st Bomb Group 535th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 38168075
  • Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
  • Role/Job: Top Turret Gunner; Flight Engineer
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 381st Bomb Group 535th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 32335119
  • Highest Rank: Sergeant
  • Role/Job: Tail Gunner

Aircraft

  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: Mission Belle
  • Unit: 381st Bomb Group 535th Bomb Squadron

Missions

Places

Prisoners of war, including Colonel Hubert Zemke of the 479th Fighter Group at Stalag Luft I.
  • Site type: Prisoner of war camp
  • Known as: Stalag Luft I, Barth, Germany

Events

Event Location Date Description

Born

California, United States 2 January 1923

Enlisted

March Field, Riverside, California, United States 7 April 1942 as a Private in the Air Corps

Other

Prisoner of War (POW)

Barth, Germany 1 December 1943 interned at Stalag Luft 1, South Compound, Barth, Germany

Died

24 March 2011

Buried

Riverside National Cemetery, Riverside, California, United States

Revisions

Date
ContributorARowe95
Changes
Sources

ARowe95

Date
ContributorED-BB
Changes
Sources

MACR 1661
NARA WWII Enlistment Records
NARA WWII POW records

Date
ContributorAAM
Changes
Sources

Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 1661 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database