Fg Off
Roderick
Borden
(Cy)
Gray
Born in Sault Ste. Marie, Algoma, Ontario, Canada
Ancestors 
Son of David Stanley Gray
and Reina Blanche (Gibbs) Gray
[sibling(s) unknown]
[spouse(s) unknown]
[children unknown]
Died
at age 26
in Bay of Biscay, At Sea
Profile last modified
| Created 2 Sep 2023
This page has been accessed 36 times.
Biography
Cy Gray is Notable.
Flying Officer Roderick Borden Gray, GC, also known as Cy Gray, of the Royal Canadian Air Force was posthumously awarded the George Cross for his self-sacrifice in putting the lives of his comrades ahead of his own.
He was the son of David Stanley and Rena Blanche (nee Gibbs) Gray of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. Brother of David, Stanley, Robert and Patricia. Husband of Muriel Elizabeth (nee Burns) Gray, of North Vancouver, British Columbia.
Flying Officer Cy Gray served in the Royal Air Force in World War II
Service started:
Unit(s): No. 172 Squadron
Service ended: 1944
Service started:
Unit(s): No. 172 Squadron
Service ended: 1944
Fg Off Cy Gray was drowned after his plane was shot down during World War II.
F/O Gray was attached to RAF 172 Squadron flying Vickers Wellington bombers on anti submarine patrols. On the night of 26/27 August 1944 his Wellington bomber attacked the Type IXC/40 U-534 in the Bay of Biscay. Anti aircraft return fire from the U boat brought the Wellington down into the sea. The surviving four members of the Wellington crew had only a single man dinghy between them, he helped two wounded crewmen into a dinghy but refused to climb aboard it himself, fearing it would capsize and imperil them all. Despite his own severe injuries he clung to the side of the dinghy instead, losing consciousness after several hours in the frigid water and drowning. His colleagues were eventually rescued by a Sunderland flying boat of 10 Squadron RAAF after 15 hours in the water and their account prompted the award. He was originally nominated for the Albert Medal. Notice of his award appeared in the London Gazette on March 13, 1945.
The 155 Royal Canadian Air Cadet Squadron is named in his honor.
Roderick was mentioned on a memorial in Runnymede Memorial, Englefield Green, Runnymede Borough, Surrey, England with a death date of 27 August 1944.[1]
Sources
- ↑
Memorial:
Find a Grave (has image)
Find A Grave: Memorial #15253782 (accessed 14 November 2023)
Memorial page for Flying Officer Roderick Borden “Cy” Gray (2 Oct 1917-27 Aug 1944), citing Runnymede Memorial, Englefield Green, Runnymede Borough, Surrey, England (plot: Panel 246.); Maintained by SJB Hearn (contributor 46864594).
- Wikidata: Item Q5197308, en:Wikipedia
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Featured German connections: Cy is 27 degrees from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, 29 degrees from Dietrich Bonhoeffer, 28 degrees from Lucas Cranach, 26 degrees from Stefanie Graf, 26 degrees from Wilhelm Grimm, 29 degrees from Fanny Hensel, 32 degrees from Theodor Heuss, 18 degrees from Alexander Mack, 37 degrees from Carl Miele, 22 degrees from Nathan Rothschild, 27 degrees from Hermann Friedrich Albert von Ihering and 23 degrees from Ferdinand von Zeppelin on our single family tree. Login to see how you relate to 33 million family members.
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Categories: Royal Canadian Air Force, World War II | Runnymede Memorial, Runnymede, Surrey | George Cross | Notables | No. 172 Squadron, Royal Air Force, World War II | Killed in Action, United Kingdom, World War II