James Frederick Ryan
- Rank: Private
- Position: Paratrooper
- Unit: 101st Airborne Division, 506th Regiment, Company B
- Commanding Officer: Captain Fred Hamill
- Hometown: Minnesota
- Brothers: 2
Days after the D-Day assault on June 6, 1944, Private James Frederick Ryan (Nathan Fillion) was part of a 101st Airborne Division unit holding the French village of Neuville. Approached by Captain John Miller of the 2nd Ranger Battalion and informed that his brothers had been killed in combat, a distraught Ryan expressed his disbelief, informing Miller that his brothers were still in grammar school. Miller, looking for a Private James Francis Ryan of Iowa, realized that a simple mistake had been made and assured Ryan that his brothers were probably fine. Ryan, who had planned to take his brothers fishing when he returned home, was shaken up by the incident.
