Mervyn Davies – Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve

Sergeant Mervyn Davies – Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve

Early Life and Family Background

Mervyn Davies

Mervyn Davies was born in 1920 in Swansea, the only child of James Davies and Elizabeth A. Davies.

1921 Census

The 1921 Census records the family living at 17 Twylan Road, Morriston, where James, aged thirty, was employed as a helper in the tinplate mills at the Duffryn Steel and Tinplate Works, though at the time he was out of work. Elizabeth, aged twenty‑nine, managed the household, and their one‑year‑old son Mervyn completed the family.

1939 Register

1939 Register – Life in Morriston

By the 1939 Register, the Davies family had moved to 1 Vicarage Road, Morriston. James was recorded as a tin mill worker (heavy work), while Elizabeth continued to manage the home. Mervyn, now nineteen, was employed as an incorporated accountant clerk, a profession he pursued before entering wartime service.

Military Service – Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve

Mervyn later joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, rising to the rank of Sergeant Observer. He entered the RAF in September 1940, and six months before his death he achieved his sergeant’s rank. Attached to Coastal Command, he flew long and hazardous patrols, often with an Australian crew, carrying out the demanding reconnaissance and protection duties that defined the Command’s work.

Death During Night Training Exercise

On 21 July 1942, Mervyn lost his life when the Blenheim IV bomber in which he was flying spun into the ground at Southfield Farm near Bridlington, Yorkshire, during a night navigational exercise. The crash was fatal, ending the life of a young airman whose promise had already begun to show.

Herald of Wales

Press Coverage – Herald of Wales

The Herald of Wales reported the tragedy under the headline “Morriston Airman Killed on Active Service.” The article described Mervyn as a former pupil of Pentrepoeth School and Swansea Grammar School, well known locally for his athletic ability in both rugby and cricket. Before volunteering for service, he had worked with Clarke, Dovey and Co., accountants. His death, the paper noted, removed from Morriston a young man of talent, achievement, and quiet courage.

Mervyn Davies
Morriston Cemetery
credit - findagrave

Burial

Mervyn’s body was brought home to Swansea and laid to rest at Morriston Cemetery, where his grave stands among the many airmen, soldiers, and sailors who lost their lives during the Second World War.