Thomas Gray, VC (17 May 1914 – 12 May 1940) was a British airman and a recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with " republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from th ...

forces.

RAF career

Gray was 25 years old, and a sergeant in No. 12 Squadron RAF,

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) an ...

(RAF) during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

when the following deed took place for which he and his pilot Flying Officer Donald Garland were awarded the VC in a joint citation. On 12 May 1940, over the Albert Canal, Belgium, one bridge in particular was being used by the invading German army, with protection from fighter aircraft, anti-aircraft and machine-guns. The RAF was ordered to demolish this vital bridge, and five Fairey Battle bombers were despatched with Sergeant Gray as the navigator in the plane leading the bombing attack. They met an inferno of anti-aircraft fire, but the mission was accomplished, much of the success being due to the coolness and resourcefulness of pilot Donald Garland of the leading aircraft and the navigation of Sergeant Gray. Only one aircraft made it back to base. Gray is buried at the Heverlee War Cemetery near

Leuven Leuven (, ) or Louvain (, , ; german: link=no, Löwen ) is the capital and largest City status in Belgium, city of the Provinces of Belgium, province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located about east of Brussels. Th ...

in Belgium.

Victoria Cross citation

The announcement and accompanying citation for Gray's VC was published in supplement to the ''

London Gazette London is the capital and 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 down to the North Sea, and has been a major s ...

'' on 11 June 1940, reading: ThomasGrayVCGrave

Legacy

A Vickers VC-10 Serial 'XR807' of No. 101 Squadron was named 'Donald Garland VC & Thomas Gray VC'. In 2005, to mark its 90th anniversary, No.12 Squadron RAF flew a Tornado GR4 with Flying Officer Garland's and Sergeant Gray's names painted under the cockpit as a mark of respect. There is a monument on the bridge to the operation. On the day of the attack on the bridge, Garland and his crew flew from the grass airfield near the village of

Amifontaine Amifontaine () is a commune in the department of Aisne in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. Geography Amifontaine is located some 20 km southeast of Laon and 40 km northwest of Rheims. The Autoroute des Anglais (A26, E17) ...

, France, where No. 12 Squadron had been based since December 1939. No memorial to the airfield, and to the men who flew from it, has been reported to exist in the area.Peter West, "Boredom, Bravery and Courage," Flypast Magazine, March 2003, pp. 65–68.

References

External links

Flying Officer D.E. Garland & Sergeant T. Grey
in ''The Art of War'' exhibition at the UK National Archives * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gray, Thomas 1914 births 1940 deaths British World War II recipients of the Victoria Cross Royal Air Force airmen Burials at Heverlee Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery Royal Air Force personnel killed in World War II Royal Air Force recipients of the Victoria Cross People from Wiltshire Aviators killed by being shot down Military personnel from Wiltshire