James William Elias Davies, (1913 – 27 June 1940) was an American combat fighter pilot who was the first American-born airman to die in combat in World War II. Davies was shot down and killed on 27 June 1940. Although born in the United States, his family moved to Wales before the start of the war. As such, he appears in official records as being British.

Royal Air Force service

Davies joined the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

in 1936 and by 1939 was flying the

Hawker Hurricane The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft of the 1930s–40s which was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd. for service with the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was overshadowed in the public consciousness by ...

monoplane fighter with

No. 79 Squadron RAF ("Nothing can stand against us") , dates=1 August 1917 (RFC) – 15 July 191922 March 1937 – 30 December 194515 November 1951 – 1 January 19612 January 1967 – 31 August 1992 , country= United Kingdom , allegiance= , branch= Royal Air For ...

RAF Biggin Hill London Biggin Hill Airport is an operational general aviation airport at Biggin Hill in the London Borough of Bromley, located south-southeast of Central London. The airport was formerly a Royal Air Force station RAF Biggin Hill, and a smal ...

. The squadron was soon in action after the outbreak of World War II and by the end of June 1940 Davies had already claimed six German aircraft shot down and two shared to become a

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

. He was

Mentioned in Despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

for gallantry and devotion to duty in the execution of air operations in June 1940, and was due to be presented with the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) from the King on 27 June when he was sent as an escort to protect six aircraft on a reconnaissance mission to the French port of St Valery. The three Hurricanes were attacked by three

Messerschmitt Bf 109 The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a German World War II fighter aircraft that was, along with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the backbone of the Luftwaffe's fighter force. The Bf 109 first saw operational service in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War an ...

s over the English Channel; one of the Hurricanes escaped and one pilot bailed out into the sea, but Davies was killed. His name is inscribed on the

Air Forces Memorial The Air Forces Memorial, or Runnymede Memorial, in Englefield Green, near Egham, Surrey, England is a memorial dedicated to some 20,456 men and women from air forces of the British Empire who were lost in air and other operations during World War ...

at Runnymede for airmen with no known grave. The citation for the award of his DFC was published in the ''

London Gazette London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

'' the day following his death, reading:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Davies, Jimmy 1913 births 1940 deaths American World War II flying aces Aviators from New Jersey Aviators killed by being shot down Royal Air Force personnel killed in World War II Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom) Royal Air Force officers Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1940 Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in international waters American emigrants to Wales American Royal Air Force pilots of World War II Military personnel from New Jersey