Parents of boy, 2, who said his 'plane was shot down' became convinced he was a reincarnated fighter pilot

A toddler left his parents convinced he was recalling a past life after claiming he had been 'shot down' during World War II.

For the majority of James Leininger's life, his family appear to have been of the understanding that he was a 21-year-old Navy fighter pilot who died in 1945.

More specifically, they believe he could be the reincarnation of a fallen American hero named James M. Huston, Jr.

His mom, Andrea, explained how it all began when he was two following a visit to a flight museum in Dallas with his dad, Bruce.

The next day, his parents said the planes their son loved began to give him regular, violent nightmares occurring three to four times a week.

"I'd wake him up and he'd be screaming," she told ABC News.

James Leininger pictured alongside dad Bruce during an interview with ABC Primetime (ABC Primetime)

When she asked her son what he was dreaming about, he would apparently say, 'airplane crash on fire, little man can't get out'.

Andrea explained that at first she and Bruce were doubtful - but with James only watching kids' shows and never any World War II documentaries or anything similar, the things he would come up with at home raised questions.

The pre-schooler reportedly knew all about old aircrafts, with his mom even recalling a time that she pointed out what appeared to be a bomb on the bottom of a toy plane - James apparently corrected her, and told her it was a drop tank.

"I'd never heard of a drop tank. I didn't know what a drop tank was," Andrea added.

But his memories didn't stop there, with the youngster said to have suffered recurring nightmares of his 'former life' and had wildly accurate knowledge of Huston's death.

"Mama, before I was born, I was a pilot, and my airplane got shot in the engine, and it crashed in the water, and that's how I died," his mom recalled.

Fallen World War II hero James M. Huston, Jr, pictured alongside an older James Leininger (Fox & Friends)

This was backed up by the memoir of a veteran who saw Huston's plane go down - while his dad also spoke to three separate eyewitnesses.

One later said during an interview of TV: "I saw the hit. I would say he was hit head on, yeah, right on the middle of the engine."

James also claimed that his plane took off from a boat called 'Natoma' alongside a friend named Jack Larsen, and even pointed at a picture of Iwo Jima in a book.

"My airplane got shot down there, Daddy," James reportedly told his dad.

Bruce researched the names and discovered a World War II escort carrier called the USS Natoma Bay, and even attended a veteran reunion where he learned a pilot named Jack Larsen had actually served on the ship.

There, he discovered that a pilot named James M. Huston, Jr. was the only pilot from the carrier killed during the Battle of Iwo Jima.

While it's an extremely interesting case, it's worth noting that there is no independent evidence proving that James' memories really came from a past life.

So, is reincarnation really a thing? I hope so, but knowing my luck I'd come back as a slug.