Eric Lindsay Gray DFC

Eric Lindsay Gray, the second of Charles and Elizbeth Gray’s three children, was born at Nurse Burrows’ Private Hospital, Wellington on 24 March 1911. His parents’ address was Fernhill, Horokiwi.

He was enrolled as a five-year-old boarder at Scots College by his father on 20 September 1916.

This was when Scots was in Hobson Street, Thorndon. He was not a ‘foundation’ pupil but definitely one of the first. Gray was a member of Gibb House and during the seven years he was at Scots he won class prizes in spelling and arithmetic as well as winning placings in school athletics.

Like his father he may have left school at 12 as there is no known school record for him after 1923. Census records before WW2 give his occupation as salesman.

Gray, known as Lindsay, entered the RNZAF on 19 January 1941 and undertook his pilot training at Whenuapai and later Ohakea. He left New Zealand for the U.K. on 18 July 1941.

On 20 February 1942 he joined 104 Squadron at Kabrit in Egypt where he flew twin engine Wellington bombers on 35 missions. It was in this theatre that he was forced down at night in the desert but managed to return to base which gained him membership of the Late Arrivals Club. This club was formed in Cairo in 1941 and was made up of members of the Desert Air Force who were late returning to base because of enemy action. Members received a certificate and a silver badge of a miniature flying boot and wing. The wording on the certificate stated that when the recipient had been “obliged to abandon his Aircraft, on the ground or in the Air, as a result of unfriendly action by the enemy . . . . he had succeeded in returning to his Squadron on foot or by other means, long after his Estimated Time of Arrival.” The motto of the Club was “It is never too late to come back.” Gray was promoted to Flying Officer on 5 May 1942 and in December 1942 was posted to Canada.

In June 1943 he was posted to Egypt as RNZAF liaison officer for the Middle East and North Africa and in July that year he was promoted to Flight Lieutenant. Gray was back in the United Kingdom early in 1944 and on 29 April 1944 he joined 140 Squadron, a photo reconnaissance unit. He flew 45 missions in unarmed Mosquitoes over France, Belgium, Holland and Germany. On one occasion he was chased out to sea twice by a Focke-Wulf 190 but returned a third time to complete his mission. On 29 December 1944 he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. The citation for the award stated:

Flight Lieutenant Gray has completed a large number of sorties, including many photographic missions at high and low level over France, Belgium, Holland, and Germany.  He has frequently flown in adverse weather and has encountered much enemy opposition. On one occasion he was twice pursued out to sea by Focke Wulf 190, but returned a third time and successfully completed his mission. He has had to accomplish two forced landings by night, one of them in the desert behind the enemy lines.  Flight Lieutenant Gray has shown praiseworthy skill, tenacity, and unfailing devotion to duty at all times.

By the end of the war Lindsay had completed a total of 770 flying hours with 390 of them on operations. He left the RNZAF on 25 July 1947 but remained on the Reserve until 25 March 1966. After WW2 Lindsay married Helen Mary East and farmed at Pukerua Bay. When Lindsay and Helen moved into the Gray homestead there were frequent lively parties with ex Air Force members. A number of Air Force families had settled in Pukerua Bay at this time. Lindsay and Helen divorced in 1965, he retired in 1970 and moved to Waitahanui where he died in 1983.

 By Terry Brown and Ashley Blair