Melville was born in 1920 in Bombay, India the only child of Eric Cohen and Kitty nee Gubbay. Eric’s brother Abraham Cohen married Rachel Sofaer who was the sister of Abraham Sofaer. Abraham and Psyche had a son Edward Isaac Sofaer who was Melville’s cousin. Edward was also killed serving in 150 Sqn and has a page on the website. The Cohen and Gubbay families were from a Sephardi Jewish community which intermarried, originally in Iraq and modern day Syria and later in the Indian Empire which included modern day Myanmar. The Sofaer’s settled in Rangoon and Abraham and Eric’s father built the Sofaer Building there which is still standing. The Cohens and the Gubbay’s settled in Kolkata and maintained very close links with the Sofaers. Many of the families resettled in England prior to the Second World War. 

Melville enlisted into the RAF after 1940. On the 24 August 1943 Catalina FP287 departed from RAF Hamworthy, Poole harbour on a training flight. On its return it crashed in the harbour killing eight of the twelve personnel on board.

Captain Peter Duff, 80393
P/O William Hobson, C/2229
Nav, Richard Rasmussen, 414512
A/G, Melville Cohen
A/G, Alan Allen, 577604
F/E, Michael Doyle, 1135195
A/G, Frank Frogson, 1538347
W/Op, Geoffrey Harper, 1079414