In Memory of ...... SSGT. Eugene Lunsford Clay.
*** Danny Jones on 9 Jan 2020 - Sgt Clay has never been recovered regardless of the mis-info on the memorial bio etc. https://www.dpaa.mil/portals/85/VietnamAccounting/pmsea_una_p_tx_20191227.pdf
*** Eugene Lunsford Clay is buried at the Laurel Land Memorial Park Cemetery in Dallas, Texas, from official V.A. records.
*** Staff Sergeant Clay was a member of the 37th Air Rescue and Recovery Squadron, Da Nang, South Vietnam. On November 9, 1967, he was the flight engineer of a Sokorsky Sea King Search and Rescue Helicopter (HH-3E) on a rescue mission at Khe San, Laos. During takeoff the helicopter was hit by hostile fire, crashed and burned. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.
You may be gone, no longer living on this earth; but you will live on - in the memories of your family and friends. There will always be a part of you living in those who knew you. You will live on because we remember you!
EUGENE LUNSFORD CLAY - Air Force - SSGT - E5
Age: 28
Race: Caucasian
Date of Birth Feb 20, 1939 - Born in Snyder, Tx.
From: ARLINGTON, TX
Religion: BAPTIST
Marital Status: Single - Child's Mother, Erma Jane Overstreet Clay. Son, Eugene Lunsford Clay, Jr., born Feb. 28, 1964 in Wichita, Tx., in C/O Mrs. Erma Jane Overstreet Hanlin. Parents: Father, Clyde Dell M. Clay and Mother, Anna Marea Nelson Clay, both of Arlington, Tx.
***** Eddieb, i proudly wear his bracelet.
i believe the movie "Red Dawn" is a fictionalized version of his capture & escape. what do you think?
respectfully,
pjprather
***** "Texas, Birth Index"
Name: Lunsford Eugene Clay
Event Type: Birth
Event Date: 20 Feb 1939
Event Place: Scurry, Texas
Gender: Male
Father's Name: Clyde Clay
Mother's Name: Ann Marea Nelson
Son: "Texas, Birth Index"
Name: Eugene Lunsford Jr. Clay
Event Type: Birth
Event Date: 28 Feb 1964
Event Place: Wichita, Texas
Gender: Male
Father's Name: Eugene Lunsford Clay
Mother's Name: Erma Jane Overstreet
***** "United States Census, 1940"
Name: Eugene L Clay
Event Type: Census
Event Date: 1940
Event Place: East Ward, Snyder, Commissioner's Precinct 4, Scurry County, Texas, United States
Gender: Male
Age: 1
Marital Status: Single
Race: White
Relationship to Head of Household: Son
Birthplace: Texas
Birth Year (Estimated): 1939
Household Gender Age Birthplace
Head Clyde M Clay M 34 Texas
Wife Annie M Clay F 35 Texas
Son Clydell M Clay M 5 Texas
Son Max W Clay M 3 Texas
Son Eugene L Clay M 1 Texas
Son Paul M Clay M 8 Texas
Stepdaughter Mildred L Pettijohn F 15 Texas
Stepson Johnie B Pettijohn M 9 Texas
************** Memorial services for Sgt. Eugene L. Clay, 28, an Air Force flight engineer who was killed November 9 in Vietnam, will be held in Laurel Land Funeral Chapel.
A native of Snyder, Scurry County, Clay attended Sunset High School here before joining the Air Force 12 years ago.
Clay was on his second tour of duty in Vietnam. He had been there only two weeks.
Survivors: Parents, Mr. and Mrs. Clyde M. Clay of Arlington; a son, Eugene L. Clay, Jr., of Lawton, Oklahoma; two brothers, Clyde D. Clay of Dallas and Max W. Clay of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; a stepbrother, John Pettijohn of Dallas; and a sister, Mrs. V. G. Moore of Dallas.
Dallas News - 12-10-1967
Length of service 10 years
His tour began on Jan 9, 1967
Casualty was on Nov 9, 1967
In LZ, LAOS
Hostile, died while missing, HELICOPTER - CREW
AIR LOSS, CRASH ON LAND
Body was not recovered
Panel 29E - Line 57
Others In Incident: Joseph G. Kusick; Bruce R. Baxter; Ralph W. Brower; Larry W. Maysey (all missing); Gerald Young (rescued - awarded Congressional Medal Of Honor for action); 3 indigenous personnel with Special Forces team
(rescued)
Staff Sergeant Clay was a member of the 37th Air Rescue and Recovery Squadron, Da Nang, South Vietnam.
On November 9, 1967, he was the flight engineer of a Sokorsky Sea King Search and Rescue Helicopter (HH-3E) on a rescue mission at Khe San, Laos.
During takeoff the helicopter was hit by hostile fire, crashed and burned.
Identification tags of the crew-members were placed with the remains. Weather conditions and enemy action would not permit helicopters to make the extraction either that day or the day following.
*************************
The remains of the crew and passengers aboard Jolly Green 26 were never recovered. Although the location of the crash is known, the bodies of the crew and recon team who died still lie on foreign soil.
Gamble C. Dick, U.S. Army, Retired, led the team to find Jolly Green 26 in 1967.
26 March 2007 - Latest Update on the Search
From Jeff Nash: There's really no more news on any recovery of remains from the JG 26 crash site.
Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command out of Hawaii has been to the site a couple of times in the last few years and did some excavating, but no luck.
***********************************************
Staff Sergeant Eugene Lunsford Clay
Air Force - For service as set forth in the following:
CITATION:
The President of the United States of America, authorized by Title 10, Section 8742, United States Code, takes pride in presenting the Air Force Cross (Posthumously) to Staff Sergeant Eugene Lunsford Clay (AFSN: 18497841), United States Air Force, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an opposing armed force as an HH-3E Flight Engineer of the 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron, 3d Air Rescue and Recovery Group, DaNang Air Base, Vietnam, in action in Southeast Asia on 9 November 1967. On that date, Sergeant Clay attempted the night extraction of a ground reconnaissance team after his helicopter had been severely damaged. Two other helicopters had been shot down and a third extensively damaged in previous attempts. During the rescue attempt, Sergeant Clay unhesitatingly exposed himself to hostile fire to assist the survivors to the aircraft. The hostile forces closed in quickly, and as the damaged helicopter departed, it was shot down. Through his extraordinary heroism, superb airmanship, and aggressiveness in the face of hostile forces, Staff Sergeant Clay reflected the highest credit upon himself and the United States Air Force.
************************************
.
*** Danny Jones on 9 Jan 2020 - Sgt Clay has never been recovered regardless of the mis-info on the memorial bio etc. https://www.dpaa.mil/portals/85/VietnamAccounting/pmsea_una_p_tx_20191227.pdf
*** Eugene Lunsford Clay is buried at the Laurel Land Memorial Park Cemetery in Dallas, Texas, from official V.A. records.
*** Staff Sergeant Clay was a member of the 37th Air Rescue and Recovery Squadron, Da Nang, South Vietnam. On November 9, 1967, he was the flight engineer of a Sokorsky Sea King Search and Rescue Helicopter (HH-3E) on a rescue mission at Khe San, Laos. During takeoff the helicopter was hit by hostile fire, crashed and burned. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.
You may be gone, no longer living on this earth; but you will live on - in the memories of your family and friends. There will always be a part of you living in those who knew you. You will live on because we remember you!
EUGENE LUNSFORD CLAY - Air Force - SSGT - E5
Age: 28
Race: Caucasian
Date of Birth Feb 20, 1939 - Born in Snyder, Tx.
From: ARLINGTON, TX
Religion: BAPTIST
Marital Status: Single - Child's Mother, Erma Jane Overstreet Clay. Son, Eugene Lunsford Clay, Jr., born Feb. 28, 1964 in Wichita, Tx., in C/O Mrs. Erma Jane Overstreet Hanlin. Parents: Father, Clyde Dell M. Clay and Mother, Anna Marea Nelson Clay, both of Arlington, Tx.
***** Eddieb, i proudly wear his bracelet.
i believe the movie "Red Dawn" is a fictionalized version of his capture & escape. what do you think?
respectfully,
pjprather
***** "Texas, Birth Index"
Name: Lunsford Eugene Clay
Event Type: Birth
Event Date: 20 Feb 1939
Event Place: Scurry, Texas
Gender: Male
Father's Name: Clyde Clay
Mother's Name: Ann Marea Nelson
Son: "Texas, Birth Index"
Name: Eugene Lunsford Jr. Clay
Event Type: Birth
Event Date: 28 Feb 1964
Event Place: Wichita, Texas
Gender: Male
Father's Name: Eugene Lunsford Clay
Mother's Name: Erma Jane Overstreet
***** "United States Census, 1940"
Name: Eugene L Clay
Event Type: Census
Event Date: 1940
Event Place: East Ward, Snyder, Commissioner's Precinct 4, Scurry County, Texas, United States
Gender: Male
Age: 1
Marital Status: Single
Race: White
Relationship to Head of Household: Son
Birthplace: Texas
Birth Year (Estimated): 1939
Household Gender Age Birthplace
Head Clyde M Clay M 34 Texas
Wife Annie M Clay F 35 Texas
Son Clydell M Clay M 5 Texas
Son Max W Clay M 3 Texas
Son Eugene L Clay M 1 Texas
Son Paul M Clay M 8 Texas
Stepdaughter Mildred L Pettijohn F 15 Texas
Stepson Johnie B Pettijohn M 9 Texas
************** Memorial services for Sgt. Eugene L. Clay, 28, an Air Force flight engineer who was killed November 9 in Vietnam, will be held in Laurel Land Funeral Chapel.
A native of Snyder, Scurry County, Clay attended Sunset High School here before joining the Air Force 12 years ago.
Clay was on his second tour of duty in Vietnam. He had been there only two weeks.
Survivors: Parents, Mr. and Mrs. Clyde M. Clay of Arlington; a son, Eugene L. Clay, Jr., of Lawton, Oklahoma; two brothers, Clyde D. Clay of Dallas and Max W. Clay of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; a stepbrother, John Pettijohn of Dallas; and a sister, Mrs. V. G. Moore of Dallas.
Dallas News - 12-10-1967
Length of service 10 years
His tour began on Jan 9, 1967
Casualty was on Nov 9, 1967
In LZ, LAOS
Hostile, died while missing, HELICOPTER - CREW
AIR LOSS, CRASH ON LAND
Body was not recovered
Panel 29E - Line 57
Others In Incident: Joseph G. Kusick; Bruce R. Baxter; Ralph W. Brower; Larry W. Maysey (all missing); Gerald Young (rescued - awarded Congressional Medal Of Honor for action); 3 indigenous personnel with Special Forces team
(rescued)
Staff Sergeant Clay was a member of the 37th Air Rescue and Recovery Squadron, Da Nang, South Vietnam.
On November 9, 1967, he was the flight engineer of a Sokorsky Sea King Search and Rescue Helicopter (HH-3E) on a rescue mission at Khe San, Laos.
During takeoff the helicopter was hit by hostile fire, crashed and burned.
Identification tags of the crew-members were placed with the remains. Weather conditions and enemy action would not permit helicopters to make the extraction either that day or the day following.
*************************
The remains of the crew and passengers aboard Jolly Green 26 were never recovered. Although the location of the crash is known, the bodies of the crew and recon team who died still lie on foreign soil.
Gamble C. Dick, U.S. Army, Retired, led the team to find Jolly Green 26 in 1967.
26 March 2007 - Latest Update on the Search
From Jeff Nash: There's really no more news on any recovery of remains from the JG 26 crash site.
Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command out of Hawaii has been to the site a couple of times in the last few years and did some excavating, but no luck.
***********************************************
Staff Sergeant Eugene Lunsford Clay
Air Force - For service as set forth in the following:
CITATION:
The President of the United States of America, authorized by Title 10, Section 8742, United States Code, takes pride in presenting the Air Force Cross (Posthumously) to Staff Sergeant Eugene Lunsford Clay (AFSN: 18497841), United States Air Force, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an opposing armed force as an HH-3E Flight Engineer of the 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron, 3d Air Rescue and Recovery Group, DaNang Air Base, Vietnam, in action in Southeast Asia on 9 November 1967. On that date, Sergeant Clay attempted the night extraction of a ground reconnaissance team after his helicopter had been severely damaged. Two other helicopters had been shot down and a third extensively damaged in previous attempts. During the rescue attempt, Sergeant Clay unhesitatingly exposed himself to hostile fire to assist the survivors to the aircraft. The hostile forces closed in quickly, and as the damaged helicopter departed, it was shot down. Through his extraordinary heroism, superb airmanship, and aggressiveness in the face of hostile forces, Staff Sergeant Clay reflected the highest credit upon himself and the United States Air Force.
************************************
.
In Memory of ...... SSGT. Eugene Lunsford Clay.
*** Danny Jones on 9 Jan 2020 - Sgt Clay has never been recovered regardless of the mis-info on the memorial bio etc. https://www.dpaa.mil/portals/85/VietnamAccounting/pmsea_una_p_tx_20191227.pdf
*** Eugene Lunsford Clay is buried at the Laurel Land Memorial Park Cemetery in Dallas, Texas, from official V.A. records.
*** Staff Sergeant Clay was a member of the 37th Air Rescue and Recovery Squadron, Da Nang, South Vietnam. On November 9, 1967, he was the flight engineer of a Sokorsky Sea King Search and Rescue Helicopter (HH-3E) on a rescue mission at Khe San, Laos. During takeoff the helicopter was hit by hostile fire, crashed and burned. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.
You may be gone, no longer living on this earth; but you will live on - in the memories of your family and friends. There will always be a part of you living in those who knew you. You will live on because we remember you!
EUGENE LUNSFORD CLAY - Air Force - SSGT - E5
Age: 28
Race: Caucasian
Date of Birth Feb 20, 1939 - Born in Snyder, Tx.
From: ARLINGTON, TX
Religion: BAPTIST
Marital Status: Single - Child's Mother, Erma Jane Overstreet Clay. Son, Eugene Lunsford Clay, Jr., born Feb. 28, 1964 in Wichita, Tx., in C/O Mrs. Erma Jane Overstreet Hanlin. Parents: Father, Clyde Dell M. Clay and Mother, Anna Marea Nelson Clay, both of Arlington, Tx.
***** Eddieb, i proudly wear his bracelet.
i believe the movie "Red Dawn" is a fictionalized version of his capture & escape. what do you think?
respectfully,
pjprather
***** "Texas, Birth Index"
Name: Lunsford Eugene Clay
Event Type: Birth
Event Date: 20 Feb 1939
Event Place: Scurry, Texas
Gender: Male
Father's Name: Clyde Clay
Mother's Name: Ann Marea Nelson
Son: "Texas, Birth Index"
Name: Eugene Lunsford Jr. Clay
Event Type: Birth
Event Date: 28 Feb 1964
Event Place: Wichita, Texas
Gender: Male
Father's Name: Eugene Lunsford Clay
Mother's Name: Erma Jane Overstreet
***** "United States Census, 1940"
Name: Eugene L Clay
Event Type: Census
Event Date: 1940
Event Place: East Ward, Snyder, Commissioner's Precinct 4, Scurry County, Texas, United States
Gender: Male
Age: 1
Marital Status: Single
Race: White
Relationship to Head of Household: Son
Birthplace: Texas
Birth Year (Estimated): 1939
Household Gender Age Birthplace
Head Clyde M Clay M 34 Texas
Wife Annie M Clay F 35 Texas
Son Clydell M Clay M 5 Texas
Son Max W Clay M 3 Texas
Son Eugene L Clay M 1 Texas
Son Paul M Clay M 8 Texas
Stepdaughter Mildred L Pettijohn F 15 Texas
Stepson Johnie B Pettijohn M 9 Texas
************** Memorial services for Sgt. Eugene L. Clay, 28, an Air Force flight engineer who was killed November 9 in Vietnam, will be held in Laurel Land Funeral Chapel.
A native of Snyder, Scurry County, Clay attended Sunset High School here before joining the Air Force 12 years ago.
Clay was on his second tour of duty in Vietnam. He had been there only two weeks.
Survivors: Parents, Mr. and Mrs. Clyde M. Clay of Arlington; a son, Eugene L. Clay, Jr., of Lawton, Oklahoma; two brothers, Clyde D. Clay of Dallas and Max W. Clay of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; a stepbrother, John Pettijohn of Dallas; and a sister, Mrs. V. G. Moore of Dallas.
Dallas News - 12-10-1967
Length of service 10 years
His tour began on Jan 9, 1967
Casualty was on Nov 9, 1967
In LZ, LAOS
Hostile, died while missing, HELICOPTER - CREW
AIR LOSS, CRASH ON LAND
Body was not recovered
Panel 29E - Line 57
Others In Incident: Joseph G. Kusick; Bruce R. Baxter; Ralph W. Brower; Larry W. Maysey (all missing); Gerald Young (rescued - awarded Congressional Medal Of Honor for action); 3 indigenous personnel with Special Forces team
(rescued)
Staff Sergeant Clay was a member of the 37th Air Rescue and Recovery Squadron, Da Nang, South Vietnam.
On November 9, 1967, he was the flight engineer of a Sokorsky Sea King Search and Rescue Helicopter (HH-3E) on a rescue mission at Khe San, Laos.
During takeoff the helicopter was hit by hostile fire, crashed and burned.
Identification tags of the crew-members were placed with the remains. Weather conditions and enemy action would not permit helicopters to make the extraction either that day or the day following.
*************************
The remains of the crew and passengers aboard Jolly Green 26 were never recovered. Although the location of the crash is known, the bodies of the crew and recon team who died still lie on foreign soil.
Gamble C. Dick, U.S. Army, Retired, led the team to find Jolly Green 26 in 1967.
26 March 2007 - Latest Update on the Search
From Jeff Nash: There's really no more news on any recovery of remains from the JG 26 crash site.
Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command out of Hawaii has been to the site a couple of times in the last few years and did some excavating, but no luck.
***********************************************
Staff Sergeant Eugene Lunsford Clay
Air Force - For service as set forth in the following:
CITATION:
The President of the United States of America, authorized by Title 10, Section 8742, United States Code, takes pride in presenting the Air Force Cross (Posthumously) to Staff Sergeant Eugene Lunsford Clay (AFSN: 18497841), United States Air Force, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an opposing armed force as an HH-3E Flight Engineer of the 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron, 3d Air Rescue and Recovery Group, DaNang Air Base, Vietnam, in action in Southeast Asia on 9 November 1967. On that date, Sergeant Clay attempted the night extraction of a ground reconnaissance team after his helicopter had been severely damaged. Two other helicopters had been shot down and a third extensively damaged in previous attempts. During the rescue attempt, Sergeant Clay unhesitatingly exposed himself to hostile fire to assist the survivors to the aircraft. The hostile forces closed in quickly, and as the damaged helicopter departed, it was shot down. Through his extraordinary heroism, superb airmanship, and aggressiveness in the face of hostile forces, Staff Sergeant Clay reflected the highest credit upon himself and the United States Air Force.
************************************
.
*** Danny Jones on 9 Jan 2020 - Sgt Clay has never been recovered regardless of the mis-info on the memorial bio etc. https://www.dpaa.mil/portals/85/VietnamAccounting/pmsea_una_p_tx_20191227.pdf
*** Eugene Lunsford Clay is buried at the Laurel Land Memorial Park Cemetery in Dallas, Texas, from official V.A. records.
*** Staff Sergeant Clay was a member of the 37th Air Rescue and Recovery Squadron, Da Nang, South Vietnam. On November 9, 1967, he was the flight engineer of a Sokorsky Sea King Search and Rescue Helicopter (HH-3E) on a rescue mission at Khe San, Laos. During takeoff the helicopter was hit by hostile fire, crashed and burned. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.
You may be gone, no longer living on this earth; but you will live on - in the memories of your family and friends. There will always be a part of you living in those who knew you. You will live on because we remember you!
EUGENE LUNSFORD CLAY - Air Force - SSGT - E5
Age: 28
Race: Caucasian
Date of Birth Feb 20, 1939 - Born in Snyder, Tx.
From: ARLINGTON, TX
Religion: BAPTIST
Marital Status: Single - Child's Mother, Erma Jane Overstreet Clay. Son, Eugene Lunsford Clay, Jr., born Feb. 28, 1964 in Wichita, Tx., in C/O Mrs. Erma Jane Overstreet Hanlin. Parents: Father, Clyde Dell M. Clay and Mother, Anna Marea Nelson Clay, both of Arlington, Tx.
***** Eddieb, i proudly wear his bracelet.
i believe the movie "Red Dawn" is a fictionalized version of his capture & escape. what do you think?
respectfully,
pjprather
***** "Texas, Birth Index"
Name: Lunsford Eugene Clay
Event Type: Birth
Event Date: 20 Feb 1939
Event Place: Scurry, Texas
Gender: Male
Father's Name: Clyde Clay
Mother's Name: Ann Marea Nelson
Son: "Texas, Birth Index"
Name: Eugene Lunsford Jr. Clay
Event Type: Birth
Event Date: 28 Feb 1964
Event Place: Wichita, Texas
Gender: Male
Father's Name: Eugene Lunsford Clay
Mother's Name: Erma Jane Overstreet
***** "United States Census, 1940"
Name: Eugene L Clay
Event Type: Census
Event Date: 1940
Event Place: East Ward, Snyder, Commissioner's Precinct 4, Scurry County, Texas, United States
Gender: Male
Age: 1
Marital Status: Single
Race: White
Relationship to Head of Household: Son
Birthplace: Texas
Birth Year (Estimated): 1939
Household Gender Age Birthplace
Head Clyde M Clay M 34 Texas
Wife Annie M Clay F 35 Texas
Son Clydell M Clay M 5 Texas
Son Max W Clay M 3 Texas
Son Eugene L Clay M 1 Texas
Son Paul M Clay M 8 Texas
Stepdaughter Mildred L Pettijohn F 15 Texas
Stepson Johnie B Pettijohn M 9 Texas
************** Memorial services for Sgt. Eugene L. Clay, 28, an Air Force flight engineer who was killed November 9 in Vietnam, will be held in Laurel Land Funeral Chapel.
A native of Snyder, Scurry County, Clay attended Sunset High School here before joining the Air Force 12 years ago.
Clay was on his second tour of duty in Vietnam. He had been there only two weeks.
Survivors: Parents, Mr. and Mrs. Clyde M. Clay of Arlington; a son, Eugene L. Clay, Jr., of Lawton, Oklahoma; two brothers, Clyde D. Clay of Dallas and Max W. Clay of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; a stepbrother, John Pettijohn of Dallas; and a sister, Mrs. V. G. Moore of Dallas.
Dallas News - 12-10-1967
Length of service 10 years
His tour began on Jan 9, 1967
Casualty was on Nov 9, 1967
In LZ, LAOS
Hostile, died while missing, HELICOPTER - CREW
AIR LOSS, CRASH ON LAND
Body was not recovered
Panel 29E - Line 57
Others In Incident: Joseph G. Kusick; Bruce R. Baxter; Ralph W. Brower; Larry W. Maysey (all missing); Gerald Young (rescued - awarded Congressional Medal Of Honor for action); 3 indigenous personnel with Special Forces team
(rescued)
Staff Sergeant Clay was a member of the 37th Air Rescue and Recovery Squadron, Da Nang, South Vietnam.
On November 9, 1967, he was the flight engineer of a Sokorsky Sea King Search and Rescue Helicopter (HH-3E) on a rescue mission at Khe San, Laos.
During takeoff the helicopter was hit by hostile fire, crashed and burned.
Identification tags of the crew-members were placed with the remains. Weather conditions and enemy action would not permit helicopters to make the extraction either that day or the day following.
*************************
The remains of the crew and passengers aboard Jolly Green 26 were never recovered. Although the location of the crash is known, the bodies of the crew and recon team who died still lie on foreign soil.
Gamble C. Dick, U.S. Army, Retired, led the team to find Jolly Green 26 in 1967.
26 March 2007 - Latest Update on the Search
From Jeff Nash: There's really no more news on any recovery of remains from the JG 26 crash site.
Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command out of Hawaii has been to the site a couple of times in the last few years and did some excavating, but no luck.
***********************************************
Staff Sergeant Eugene Lunsford Clay
Air Force - For service as set forth in the following:
CITATION:
The President of the United States of America, authorized by Title 10, Section 8742, United States Code, takes pride in presenting the Air Force Cross (Posthumously) to Staff Sergeant Eugene Lunsford Clay (AFSN: 18497841), United States Air Force, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an opposing armed force as an HH-3E Flight Engineer of the 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron, 3d Air Rescue and Recovery Group, DaNang Air Base, Vietnam, in action in Southeast Asia on 9 November 1967. On that date, Sergeant Clay attempted the night extraction of a ground reconnaissance team after his helicopter had been severely damaged. Two other helicopters had been shot down and a third extensively damaged in previous attempts. During the rescue attempt, Sergeant Clay unhesitatingly exposed himself to hostile fire to assist the survivors to the aircraft. The hostile forces closed in quickly, and as the damaged helicopter departed, it was shot down. Through his extraordinary heroism, superb airmanship, and aggressiveness in the face of hostile forces, Staff Sergeant Clay reflected the highest credit upon himself and the United States Air Force.
************************************
.
Gravesite Details
buried at the Laurel Land Memorial Park Cemetery in Dallas, Texas, from official V.A. records.
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