Richard George Mercer was born on December 27, 1920. He was the son of Robert Woods Mercer and Catherine Elizabeth Gerhiser Mercer. he served in the 86th Troop Squadron, 437th Troop Carrier Group as a Flight Officer and Pilot of the Airspeed Horsa glider LJ135 during World War II. On June 7, 1944, F/O Mercer and Co-Pilot 1st Lt Parker at the controls, crashed horrifically at Holdy near Ste Marie du Mont, France, killing 14 of the 25 passengers and injuring the remainder. Reasons for the crash were probably a combination of the low altitude of release and the trees surrounding the selected field. F/O Mercer was also killed in the crash. He is buried now in the Crestview Memorial Park, Wichita Falls, Wichita County, Texas, USA. His name is commemorated on a plaque located at the Holy Cross Church in Ramsbury, England but his middle name's initial is inscribed as C.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, http://www.americanairmuseum.com
Source of image: www.ww2gp.org