Who was the first American serviceman killed by the Germans in WW2 ?

Question

Where did it happen and what killed him ?

Good answer but it happened in spring, 1940.

No, not the one in Russia, I came across that also and never could find the man's name, that's why I specified killed by the Germans.
You're getting closer , he was in the Army Air Corps.

It happened in Scandinavia.

It's not Billy Fiske, that's who I always thought it was.
This man was a captain in the U.S. Army Air Corps but he wasn't a pilot.
It happened in April, 1940.

It happened in Norway.

Haven't gotten the answer yet.

No one has givin' the correct answer, so I'm putting it up to vote, if you would like the correct answer e-mail me.

Answer 1

Billy Fiske was the first American to be killed by the Germans whilst fighting with the RAF. An ex olympian he claimed canadian citizenship and joined up to fight the Germans. He died on the 17th of August 1940 in the Royal West Sussex Hospital in Chichester from Burns sustained in combat on the previous day whilst returning from a mission against dive bombers over Sussex.

He was buried in Boxted cemetery Sussex.

Ray.

Answer 2

On October 31, 1941, a little more than a month before the United States entered the Second World War, USS Reuben James was sent to the bottom by U-552 with only 44 of the 160 sailors surviving.

I'm still looking to see if there were earlier deaths...here's one in 1942:

Ranger Lieutenant E.V. Loustalot, accompanied British at Dieppe Raid, Seine-Maritime on the Northern coast of France on August 19, 1942

Answer 3

The First US Military casualty in WWII happened on On 22 February 1932 when 2nd Lt Robert McCawley Short was delivering armed Chinese Air Force biplanes when he engaged twice in armed dogfights with IJN airplanes over Shanghai, China; Short was killed in action . the first Attack on a US Warship happened with the USS Panay(PR-5)on December 12, 1937. The first American causlties happen during the Battle of Shanghi when 4 American students (of the International University) were killed when Republic of China Air Force were bombing the city to haunt the Japanese advance. The first American Casualty in Europe was when Military attaché Captain Robert M. Losey was killed during a German bombardment of Dombås while assisting with the evacuation of U.S. embassy personnel and others to Sweden.

Answer 4

Captain Robert Moffat Losey (May 27, 1908 – April 21, 1940), was the first American military casualty in World War II. While serving as a military attaché to the American embassy, Losey was killed on April 21, 1940 during a German bombardment in Norway.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_M._Losey

Answer 5

Damnit, Max, another "who was 1st" question to waste my evening on!

First thoughts: maybe a merchant mariner killed during convoy operations in the Atlantic pre-Pearl Harbor? But is a merchant mariner an American serviceman? Hmmmm.....

We can exclude Americans in service to other countries (ie. flyers for the RAF, etc.) because technically they weren't American serviceman.

This leaves Operation Torch in Nov 1942. Somehow I don't think the answer will be found there.

I *may* get back to you on this.

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Looks like e fn w got the answer. But I have the name as E.V. Loustalot.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E.V._Loustalot

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Max, is this the US serviceman that died in Finland? Sources say he was killed by the Russians.

Then again, I think this is STILL not the answer...