Gordon William Pusey – Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, 104 Squadron
Sergeant Gordon William Pusey – Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, 104 Squadron
Birth and Family Background
William Henry Pusey and Lillie Beatrice Alice Jones
marriage certificate
St Luke’s Church, Peckham, Southwark
Gordon William Pusey was born in 1920 at Trebanos, Glamorgan. He was the son of William Henry Pusey and Lillie Beatrice Alice Jones, who were married in 1912 at St Luke’s Church, Peckham, Southwark.
1921 Census
At the time
of the 1921 Census, the Pusey family were residing at Swansea Road,
Trebanos, Swansea. William Henry Pusey (33), born in London, was
employed as a general labourer with National Oil Refineries, Skewen,
while his wife Lillie Beatrice Alice (34), also London-born, undertook
household duties. Their children were an adopted daughter, Irene
Lillian Pusey Price (3), and Gordon William, aged ten months.
Also present was Gordon’s aunt by marriage, Cissie May Evelyn Jones (30),
a pastry maker employed by H. Doubleday, licensed victualler.
1939 Register
By the time
of the 1939 Register, the family had moved to 12 Brooklyn Terrace,
Mumbles. William H. Pusey was employed as a rotary furnaceman at
the oil works, Alice M. Pusey undertook household duties, and Gordon
W. Pusey was working as an audit clerk with Swansea Corporation.
Military Service
Gordon
enlisted in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve and attained the rank
of Sergeant. He served as a Wireless Operator with No. 104
Squadron, which by July 1944 was operating from RAF Foggia Main,
Italy, as part of the Mediterranean Allied Air Forces. The squadron was
equipped with Vickers Wellington X aircraft and was heavily engaged in long-range
night bombing operations against strategic targets in Austria, Hungary,
Yugoslavia, and northern Italy, forming part of the wider Allied effort to
disrupt German airfields, transport networks, and supply routes.Vickers Wellington X
On the
night of 6th July 1944, No. 104 Squadron took part in a deep-penetration
bombing raid against Feuersbrunn airfield, near Vienna, a key
Luftwaffe installation used by fighter and night-fighter units. Such operations
required aircraft to fly at the extreme limits of the Wellington’s range,
exposing crews to intense anti-aircraft fire, radar-guided German
night fighters, navigational hazards, and extreme fatigue during prolonged
sorties over heavily defended territory.
Death
During the
return from this operation on 6th July 1944, the Wellington
X carrying Sergeant Pusey was intercepted and shot down by a German
night fighter near Trestlgraben, approximately 32 miles
south-west of Vienna. Sergeant Gordon William Pusey was killed in
action as a result of this engagement.
Burial and Commemoration
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| Gordon William Pusey Klagenfurt War Cemetery, Austria credit - findagrave |
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