Clay, James Henry

Operation Chastise (Dambusters Raid)

Date of birth:: February 2nd, 1911 (North Shields/Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom)
Date of death:: August 6th, 1995 (Gosforth/Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom)
Service number:: 159893
Nationality:: British

Biography

James Henry Clay, born on 2 February 1911 in North Shields, Tyne and Wear, was the fifth of 12 children of stonemason Robert Clay and his wife, Mary.

After qualifying as an air bomber in the RAF, Clay in the daylight raid on the Le Creusot works and joined 97 Squadron at Woodhall Spa in October 1942.

Clay completed nearly 30 operations together until March 1943, when he volunteered as bomb aimer for the new 617 Squadron, joining Les Munro's crew for the Dams Raid.

Their aircraft, AJ-W, was hit by flak over the Dutch coast. Clay attributed the damage to a flak ship.

Two months later, Clay sustained a nose injury during an attack on an Italian power station but recovered and flew 17 more missions until May 1944. He was commissioned in November 1943 and awarded the DFC in July 1944 for completing 46 operations. After serving in training units, he left the RAF in December 1945.

Post-war, Clay returned to Tyneside, marrying Patricia Butcher in 1944. They had one daughter together, alongside Patricia’s daughter from a previous marriage. He worked as an accountant and passed away in Gosforth on 6 August 1995.

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