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'''James Elms Swett''' was a fighter pilot and ace in the [[United States Marine Corps|US Marines]] in [[World War II]].  He earned the [[Medal of Honor]] for heroism on his very first combat mission, and finished the war with fifteen and a half aerial victories.

'''James Elms Swett''' was a fighter pilot and ace in the [[United States Marine Corps|US Marines]] in [[World War II]].  He earned the [[Medal of Honor]] for heroism on his very first combat mission, and finished the war with fifteen and a half aerial victories.

Swett was born on June 15, 1920, in [[Seattle]], [[Washington]], and attended college in San Mateo, [[California]], before enlisting in the Naval Reserves in August 1941.<ref>[http://www.tecom.usmc.mil/HD/Whos_Who/Swett_JE.htm Who’s Who in the Marine Corps]</ref>  He became an aviation cadet and earned his wings as a Marine Corps aviator in April 1942, being assigned soon after to VMF-221, the “Fighting Falcons”.  The unit, equipped with F4F Wildcat fighters, arrived at [[Guadalcanal]] on March 16, 1943.  By this time in the war, Guadalcanal and some surrounding islands had been secured, but most of the rest of the [[Solomon Islands]] chain was still occupied by the Japanese.  Swett had his baptism of fire three weeks later.  Having finished a morning patrol on April 7, he was sent up again in the afternoon after coastwatchers spotted a large group of Japanese planes headed straight for the Marine base.  The group turned out to be 67 [[Aichi D3A|Val dive bombers]] escorted by 110 [[Mitsubishi Zero|Zero fighters]].  When they came into visual range, Swett’s fellow flyer, John “Smiley” Burnett from VMF-214, was heard to say, “Holy Christ!  There’s millions of ‘em.”<ref name="MyFirstRef">''Semper Fi in the Sky:  The Marine Air Battles of World War II'', by Gerald Astor, Presidio Press, 2005</ref>  Meeting the Japanese were 76 Marine, Navy, and Army fighters.

Swett was born on June 15, 1920, in [[Seattle]], [[Washington]], and attended college in San Mateo, [[California]], before enlisting in the Naval Reserves in August 1941.<ref>[http://www.tecom.usmc.mil/HD/Whos_Who/Swett_JE.htm Who’s Who in the Marine Corps]</ref>  He became an aviation cadet and earned his wings as a Marine Corps aviator in April 1942, being assigned soon after to VMF-221, the “Fighting Falcons”.  The unit, equipped with F4F Wildcat fighters, arrived at [[Guadalcanal]] on March 16, 1943.  By this time in the war, Guadalcanal and some surrounding islands had been secured, but most of the rest of the [[Solomon Islands]] chain was still occupied by the Japanese.  Swett had his baptism of fire three weeks later.  Having finished a morning patrol on April 7, he was sent up again in the afternoon after coastwatchers spotted a large group of Japanese planes headed straight for the Marine base.  The group turned out to be 67 [[Aichi D3A|Val dive bombers]] escorted by 110 [[Mitsubishi Zero|Zero fighters]].  When they came into visual range, Swett’s fellow flyer, John “Smiley” Burnett from VMF-214, was heard to say, “Holy C*****!  There’s millions of ‘em.”<ref name="MyFirstRef">''Semper Fi in the Sky:  The Marine Air Battles of World War II'', by Gerald Astor, Presidio Press, 2005</ref>  Meeting the Japanese were 76 Marine, Navy, and Army fighters.

The 22-year old Swett was over Tulugi Harbor (on Tulugi Island across the sound from Guadalcanal) when he spied a group of bombers, and attacked.  He shot down three before they could start their bombing runs, then came under friendly anti-aircraft fire which put a hole in his port wing.  Pulling up at eight hundred feet, he spotted seven Vals that had just finished their drop.  He flew after them, and was able to splash four in short order.  When he lined up on the fifth, however, the rear gunner sent out a stream of murderous fire, shattering Svett’s canopy and damaging the engine.  Swett was still game, and poured the last of his ammunition into the bomber, causing it to smoke.  He turned back toward Henderson Field, trying to coax his crippled plane as far as he could.  It was losing oil, though, and the engine seized, forcing Svett to ditch in the waters off nearby Florida Island.  Swett suffered a broken nose in the crash, and was dragged twenty feet below the surface by his sinking plane before he could extricate himself.  Swett managed to get aboard his life raft, and was rescued by a picket boat.  He was taken to Tulugi, where his wounds were treated.  Unfortunately, the pain-killing combination of a shot of Scotch and a shot of morphine proved more dangerous for the young Marine than Japanese bullets, and he spent six days in the hospital.<ref>[http://www.acepilots.com/usmc_aces.html#Swett USMC Aces: James Svett]</ref>

The 22-year old Swett was over Tulugi Harbor (on Tulugi Island across the sound from Guadalcanal) when he spied a group of bombers, and attacked.  He shot down three before they could start their bombing runs, then came under friendly anti-aircraft fire which put a hole in his port wing.  Pulling up at eight hundred feet, he spotted seven Vals that had just finished their drop.  He flew after them, and was able to splash four in short order.  When he lined up on the fifth, however, the rear gunner sent out a stream of murderous fire, shattering Svett’s canopy and damaging the engine.  Swett was still game, and poured the last of his ammunition into the bomber, causing it to smoke.  He turned back toward Henderson Field, trying to coax his crippled plane as far as he could.  It was losing oil, though, and the engine seized, forcing Svett to ditch in the waters off nearby Florida Island.  Swett suffered a broken nose in the crash, and was dragged twenty feet below the surface by his sinking plane before he could extricate himself.  Swett managed to get aboard his life raft, and was rescued by a picket boat.  He was taken to Tulugi, where his wounds were treated.  Unfortunately, the pain-killing combination of a shot of Scotch and a shot of morphine proved more dangerous for the young Marine than Japanese bullets, and he spent six days in the hospital.<ref>[http://www.acepilots.com/usmc_aces.html#Swett USMC Aces: James Svett]</ref>