Major Robert Swenson USAFR (Retired), of Bellevue, will be awarded the Bronze Star medal on Aug. 10 for his actions in the last major airborne operation of World War II in Europe. The award will be presented in conjunction with the Trigger Time 8 convention in the city of Seatac.

Swenson, who turned 90 on July 10, was involved in the last major airborne operation of World War II in the European Theatre of Operations. Dubbed “The Battle of Burp Gun Corner,” the effort on March 24, 1945, stopped a German attack at the Rhine River crossing at Wesel, Germany.

What made this company unique was that it was made up entirely of Army Air Force glider pilots who were all officers.

During WWII, gliders were used extensively as the second wave of airborne operations. In addition to carrying infantry troops, or ‘Glider Riders’ as they as they were called, gliders had the advantage of being able to carry equipment such as jeeps, field artillery pieces and trailers that were too heavy to be dropped by parachute.

After landing and unloading their cargo, the glider pilot’s primary duty was to get back to their air base as soon as possible in order to be available to fly another mission, if necessary.

During the Battle of the Bulge in December 1944 and January 1945, American forces had their heaviest casualties of any engagement in the war. The 17th Airborne Division saw its first combat action of the war and their two Glider Infantry Regiments, the 193rd and the 194th, took such heavy losses that the 193rd was consolidated with the 194th. Even after consolidating the two units into one, it was still short one company of infantry.

Since the 17th Airborne Division was slated to be the primary American airborne assault force for the upcoming invasion of Germany, code named Operation Varsity, the Commanding Officer of the 194th Glider Infantry Company asked to train one squadron of glider pilots to serve as an additional infantry company for the initial phase of the operation.

Major (then Captain) Charles Gordon volunteered the 435th Troop Carrier Group’s glider pilots for this mission and, once they had delivered their loads to Landing Zone S, just north of the city of Wesel, these men would quickly organize and become the 435th Provisional Glider Pilot Infantry Company.

Assigned to bolster a gap between the 2nd and 3rd battalions of the 194th, the men of the 435th dug in at the crossroads of Holzweg and Hessenweg. Around midnight, a force of approximately 200 German infantry supported by a tank, a self-propelled artillery, and two 20mm flak guns attempted to break through the line.

The 435th held their fire until the German force was only yards away, then opened up. Flight Officer Elbert Jella fired one round from a bazooka, the first and only time he had fired one in combat, and hit the tank, causing it to immediately reverse, destroying one of the flak guns as it backed over it. The German force retreated and was later further reduced by the 2nd battalion of the 194th.

A common weapon used by German Infantry was the MP-40 submachine gun. Because of its rapid rate of fire, American troops nicknamed it the “Burp Gun.” A reporter for the Stars and Stripes newspaper wrote an article about the 435th’s engagement the night of March 24, and called it ‘The Battle of Burp Gun Corner’.

Captain Gordon and several of his men received recognition for this action, but Gordon believed that every man in the company deserved recognition and made that recommendation. With the war in Europe ending just over a month after the beginning of the Varsity Operation, the recommendation was put aside and forgotten about by everyone except now Major Gordon. He continued to push for recognition and finally, 50 years after the event, Congress authorized the presentation of the Bronze Star Medal to every member of the 435th Glider Pilot Infantry Company.

Most of the veterans of this battle were located and awarded their medal, but many were not. Some had passed away and others simply were not located. The remaining medals were stored by the National WWII Glider Pilots Association at the Silent Wings Museum in Lubbock, Texas.

Trigger Time is an organization that recognizes and discusses the contribution made by all veterans of the nation’s military, particularly those associated with WWII airborne operations. This year’s convention will be held at the Seatac DoubleTree Hotel in SeaTac, Washington. Trigger Time had asked members of the glider pilots association to give a presentation at the convention and when it was discovered that Swenson had never received his Bronze Star.

A ranking officer from Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) will present the award at 5 p.m.

“This is really quite an honor,” Swenson said when he was interviewed about receiving the honor.

Lt Colonel George Theis, USAF (Retired), the National Treasurer of the glider pilots association and a WWII glider pilot and veteran of the Varsity operation himself, said “The contributions and sacrifices made by the glider pilots of the US Army Air Forces aren’t as well-known as those of many other flying units. We always appreciate the opportunity to tell our story and are very proud to have one of our own recognized.”