Ralph John Henry Clayton

We don't know know a lot about Ralph's story but what we do know is particularly poignant. 

 

Ralph joined the R.A.F. whilst studying for his degree at the British and Foreign School Society's College at Middlesex. In 1943, at the age of 23, he was a commissioned Pilot Officer, and later that same year became Flight Lieutenant.1  On 11th February 1944, Ralph was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (D.F.C.) 2 

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Four days later on the 15th February 1944, Ralph and the seven other crew members of the Lancaster III ND445 took off from RAF Oakington in Cambridgeshire at 1708 destined for the skies over Berlin on yet another bombing raid. 

 

The Operations Record states that twenty-three aircraft were dispatched to Germany on that raid, eighteen of them were to attack Berlin and the other five were to launch a diversionary attack on Frankfurt. Both cities were completely covered by cloud that night so the results of the raid were difficult to gauge, although their bombs were dropped successfully and it could be seen from the cloud reflection that they had achieved a concentration.3

 

However, the raid was to end tragically and Ralph and the rest of the men onboard ND445 would not make it home again. Their Lancaster crashed and all of the crew were killed. It was Ralph's 40th mission over Germany.4

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Ralph and the other crew members are buried in the Berlin 1939-1945 War Cemetery.

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1. https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000523/19440824/026/0004

2. London Gazette No. 36374, Dated 1944-02-11

3. National Archives AIR 27/101/3, p52

4. https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000523/19440824/026/0004

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