Clayton A. Emerson

November 1, 1921 – July 31, 2019

From the 95th BG Memorials Foundation Facebook page:

With heavy hearts, the Memorials Foundation and the Heritage Association announce that Clayton A. Emerson of Paulden, AZ, left formation on 31 July 2019 at the age of 97. Clay was the radio operator on James W. Reed’s 334th crew. He passed away peacefully in Paulden. Folded wings.

Clay was born on 1 November 1921 and hailed from the Wolf Point area in Montana. On 15 March 1944, his crew flew to Augsburg (Germany) with Maj. Noel Strader, 336th CO, as the command pilot for the mission. During the sortie, Emerson’s 231329 H came under fierce Me-109 attacks. With a fire in the bomb bay, the A/C left the formation in a dive attempting to extinguish the flames. Ultimately, J. W. Reed made a wheels-up landing at Diepoldsau, SZ. All ten men aboard were interned.

Clay was a maternal great-uncle of Barth Lippert, who kindly informed the Memorials Foundation of Emerson’s passing. “He told me lots of stories about his short time in the Army Air Corps and being a Radio Operator on B-17s,” wrote Barth in a post on this page yesterday. “He will be missed by his family for being a survivor.”