William Riley

 Sergeant William Riley – RAF Volunteer Reserve, 9 Squadron, Royal Air Force

Sergeant William Riley, aged 21, served with No. IX Squadron, Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, during the Second World War. He was one of six airmen killed when their Vickers Wellington bomber (L7799) crashed near Alfriston, Sussex, on 21^st December 1940, following a bombing raid over northern Italy.

William was born in 1919 and baptised at St. Paul’s Church, Sketty, Swansea. He was the son of William Riley, born in Bridgend, and Gertrude Mary Riley (née Ashby), who was born in Ireland. The couple married in 1917 in Somerset before settling in South Wales.

1921 Census

By the 1921 Census, the Riley family were living at 559 Neath Road, Morriston, Swansea, where William’s father worked as a General Labourer for the Swansea Corporation. By the time of the 1939 Register, William’s mother, Gertrude, had been widowed and was living at 43 Southward Lane, Newton, Swansea.

RAF Honington, Suffolk

RAF Honington, located near South Thetford, Suffolk

During William Riley’s period of service, RAF Honington, located near South Thetford, Suffolk, was an important Royal Air Force bomber station. Built between 1935 and 1937, it was one of the first airfields constructed as part of Britain’s pre-war RAF expansion.

In its early years, several squadrons were stationed there, including:

• No. 77 Squadron (July 1937 – July 1938), flying Hawker Harts and later Vickers Wellingtons.
• No. 102 Squadron (July 1937 – July 1938), operating Handley Page Heyfords before moving to RAF Driffield.
• No. 75 Squadron (July 1938 – July 1939), equipped with Handley Page Harrows and Vickers Wellingtons, later transferred to RAF Stradishall.
• No. 215 Squadron (July 1938 – July 1939), flying Harrows and Wellingtons, before moving to RAF Bassingbourn.

During the Second World War, RAF Honington was home to several operational bomber squadrons, including No. IX Squadron, which carried out long-distance missions over enemy-occupied Europe and the Mediterranean.

IX Squadron and the December 1940 Mission

No. IX Squadron

During the war, No. IX Squadron operated Vickers Wellington bombers from RAF Honington. Its first wartime operation took place on 4 September 1939, targeting German naval forces (the Kriegsmarine) in the Baltic Sea — one of the earliest British bombing raids of the war.

On the evening of 21^st December 1940, at 8.15 p.m., eleven Wellingtons from IX Squadron took off from RAF Honington to attack industrial targets at Porto Marghera, near Venice, Italy. Of the eleven aircraft dispatched, nine returned safely the following morning. One aircraft was forced to make an emergency landing at Bexhill, Sussex, due to fuel shortage; the crew escaped injury.

Vickers Wellington

Tragically, Wellington L7799 failed to return. The aircraft crashed near Alfriston, Sussex, killing all six crew members. The cause of the crash was never established.

The Crew of Wellington L7799

• Sergeant Robert Norman Harrison, RAFVR, aged 33 – Pilot, buried at Hendon Cemetery and Crematorium.
• Sergeant James Frederick Gapp, RAFVR, aged 23 – Second Pilot, buried at St. Mary Cray Cemetery, Kent.
• Sergeant Leslie William Nichols, RAFVR, aged 32 – Observer, buried at Willesborough Cemetery.
• Sergeant Maurice Holker, RAFVR, aged 19 – Wireless Operator, buried at St. Mary Churchyard, Deane, Lancashire.
• Sergeant William Riley, RAFVR, aged 21 – Wireless Operator, buried at Oystermouth Cemetery, Swansea.
• Sergeant John Docker, RAFVR, aged 30 – Rear Gunner, buried at Upperby Cemetery, Carlisle.

Burial and Commemoration

South Wales Daily Post

William Riley
Oystermouth Cemetery
credit - findagrave

Sergeant William Riley was brought home to Swansea and laid to rest at Oystermouth Cemetery, in Section N, Grave 15, in the presence of his family. His grave stands among those of other servicemen who lost their lives during the war, and it is maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

The South Wales Daily Post, on 3^rd January 1941, published an article reporting on his funeral service, which was attended by family members, friends, and representatives of local organisations who gathered to pay tribute to the young airman.

His service and sacrifice are remembered as part of the story of RAF Honington and No. IX Squadron, whose crews faced great risks on long-distance night bombing missions during the early years of the Second World War. Though the cause of the crash of Wellington L7799 remains a mystery, the bravery of Sergeant Riley and his fellow crew members endures in remembrance.