Briegel, James Stuart

Date of birth:: March 9th, 1915 (Regina/Saskatchewan, Canada)
Date of death:: December 15th, 1943
Buried on:: Commonwealth War Graves Protestants Churchyard Huizum Village Leeuwarden
Row: 10. Grave: 4.
Service number:: R.113427
Nationality:: Canadian

Biography

James was born on March 9 1915 in Regina Saskatchewan, the son of Francis James Briegel (English) and Bella Niven Briegel nee Nicol (Scottish and deceased) of Olds Alberta. His stepmother was Mabel Francis Briegel. He had two brothers and another brother was already deceased.

He was a bookkeeper and member of the Church of England and his sports were baseball, hockey, football and rugby.

He enlisted on July 23 1941 in Edmonton and he went thereafter on November 4 1942 overseas to the UK.

James was killed in action on Thursday December 16 1943 age 28 due to a crash at Weidum - Wijtgaard south of Leeuwarden before or after an attack on Berlin in Germany. The other fallen RCAF crew member was W/O Herbert A. Turner age 24 in grave 10-2. The other fallen RAF Volunteer Reserve crew members were Sgt Raymond Hughes age 19 in grave 10-5 and F/Sgt Thomas W. Pragnell age 22 in grave 10-1 and the other fallen RAAF crew member was W/O Raymond K. Saunders age 23 in grave 10-3. The other fallen USAAF crew member F/O William C. Fisher was initially buried in Huizum but later reburied at the Ardennes American Cemetery in Neuville-en-Condroz (Belgium) in grave C-7-50. The other RCAF crew member F/Sgt O.D. Lewis survived the crash and he became then a prisoner of war and he survived the war and the other RAAF crew member F/Sgt M.A.T. Brudell survived the crash too and he also became then a prisoner of war.

He is mentioned together wit the other fallen crew members at an information sign in Huizum.

He served with the 432 Sqdn Royal Canadian Air Force.

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