WWII Letter. B - 29 Pilot. Killed In Action 1945, Nagoya, Japan. 497th Bomb Group.
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:786363 |
*** Please see my other listings for more Active Service military letters. This is a scarce and interesting original WWII letter, with good content, written in December 1944 by a United States Army Air Force pilot, a West Point graduate, who was killed in action over Japan in March 1945 when his B-29 Superfortress bomber was shot down on a mission to strike the Mitsubishi aircraft factory in Nagoya. Every man in the crew of this pilot's B-29 was killed. The letter was written by Lieut...enant John J. Swisshelm, 871st Bombardment Squadron, 497th Bombardment Group (USMA Class of 1943).
There is interesting and emotional content in this 2 page letter, which was written by Lieutenant Swisshelm on the 1st of December, 1944, at the beginning of his mission tour. He wrote the letter to his wife. The letter includes interesting content, and highly emotional content. It was written en route to Saipan to join his squadron. Much of the letter is quite sad:
"I still can't believe this is anything but a dream. Only yesterday I held you in my arms, and the war nor anything else mattered. Today I'm over a thousand miles away and already it seems as though we've been apart for years.
... I envy you going back east to see our families... I wish I could share it with you. It's easy enough to say that we were lucky enough to have had ten months of happiness together, but I wish it had been ten years."
Lieutenant John J. Swisshelm was killed in action less than four months after he wrote this letter, on a bombing mission to Nagoya, Japan. He and his wife never saw each other again.
*** Lieutenant John J. Swisshelm flew as Co-Pilot in the crew of 1st Lieutenent Paul W. Shaffrath. On the night of 24-25 March, 1945, the Shaffrath crew was flying B-29 Superfortress 42-63526, named "Teaser", on a mission to bomb the Mitsubishi aircraft engine plant at Nagoya. According to Japanese reports "Teaser" was hit in the tail by anti-aircraft fire and crashed in a residential area 3.2 miles southwest from Nagoya Dome just after midnight on March 25th, destroying several homes and killing several civilians. None of the crew attempted to escape by parachute. Some unconfirmed Japanese reports suggest that as many as three of the crew may have survived the crash but were stoned to death by Japanese civilians. There are confirmed reports that the body of at least one member of the crew was placed on public display for some time alongside the wreckage of the aircraft.
This letter was written by Lieutenant Swisshelm on the 1st of December, 1944. He wrote the letter to his wife in Long Island, New York. Lieutenant Swisshelm wrote this letter on the way Saipan to begin his mission tour. The letter comes in it's original censored cover.
*** This scarce original letter was written by Lieutenant John J. Swisshelm, 871st Bombardment Squadron, 497th Bombardment Group, XXI Bomber Command, United States Army Air Force. Lieutenant Swisshelm was a graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, Class of 1943. He flew in combat as co-pilot of a B-29 Superfortress bomber against Japanese targets in Japan and elsewhere from late 1944 until late March 1945. On the night of 24-25 March, 1945, Lieutenant Swisshelm's B-29 was shot down by anti-aircraft fire, killing Lieutenant Swisshelm and the entire crew of the aircraft.
A scarce original WWII letter, written by an American B-29 pilot who was killed in action over Japan in 1945.
Buyer pays shipping, $3.00 in Canada, $4.00 to the United States, $5.00 Overseas. Immediate payment is required for this listing. I accept Paypal only. Thank you.Canadian buyers must pay applicable GST/HST on all purchases.
There is interesting and emotional content in this 2 page letter, which was written by Lieutenant Swisshelm on the 1st of December, 1944, at the beginning of his mission tour. He wrote the letter to his wife. The letter includes interesting content, and highly emotional content. It was written en route to Saipan to join his squadron. Much of the letter is quite sad:
"I still can't believe this is anything but a dream. Only yesterday I held you in my arms, and the war nor anything else mattered. Today I'm over a thousand miles away and already it seems as though we've been apart for years.
... I envy you going back east to see our families... I wish I could share it with you. It's easy enough to say that we were lucky enough to have had ten months of happiness together, but I wish it had been ten years."
Lieutenant John J. Swisshelm was killed in action less than four months after he wrote this letter, on a bombing mission to Nagoya, Japan. He and his wife never saw each other again.
*** Lieutenant John J. Swisshelm flew as Co-Pilot in the crew of 1st Lieutenent Paul W. Shaffrath. On the night of 24-25 March, 1945, the Shaffrath crew was flying B-29 Superfortress 42-63526, named "Teaser", on a mission to bomb the Mitsubishi aircraft engine plant at Nagoya. According to Japanese reports "Teaser" was hit in the tail by anti-aircraft fire and crashed in a residential area 3.2 miles southwest from Nagoya Dome just after midnight on March 25th, destroying several homes and killing several civilians. None of the crew attempted to escape by parachute. Some unconfirmed Japanese reports suggest that as many as three of the crew may have survived the crash but were stoned to death by Japanese civilians. There are confirmed reports that the body of at least one member of the crew was placed on public display for some time alongside the wreckage of the aircraft.
This letter was written by Lieutenant Swisshelm on the 1st of December, 1944. He wrote the letter to his wife in Long Island, New York. Lieutenant Swisshelm wrote this letter on the way Saipan to begin his mission tour. The letter comes in it's original censored cover.
*** This scarce original letter was written by Lieutenant John J. Swisshelm, 871st Bombardment Squadron, 497th Bombardment Group, XXI Bomber Command, United States Army Air Force. Lieutenant Swisshelm was a graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, Class of 1943. He flew in combat as co-pilot of a B-29 Superfortress bomber against Japanese targets in Japan and elsewhere from late 1944 until late March 1945. On the night of 24-25 March, 1945, Lieutenant Swisshelm's B-29 was shot down by anti-aircraft fire, killing Lieutenant Swisshelm and the entire crew of the aircraft.
A scarce original WWII letter, written by an American B-29 pilot who was killed in action over Japan in 1945.
Buyer pays shipping, $3.00 in Canada, $4.00 to the United States, $5.00 Overseas. Immediate payment is required for this listing. I accept Paypal only. Thank you.Canadian buyers must pay applicable GST/HST on all purchases.
