Jerry Grayson, AFC is a British naval helicopter pilot who served with the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

from 1972 to 1980. He is known for being the youngest pilot to ever serve in the

. As he flew for the Royal Navy, he was part of the

Fleet Air Arm The Fleet Air Arm (FAA) is one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy and is responsible for the delivery of naval air power both from land and at sea. The Fleet Air Arm operates the F-35 Lightning II for maritime strike, the AW159 Wil ...

which operates naval military aircraft. Jerry took part in the Fastnet 1979 race which earned him the Air Force Cross during the three day operation.

Career

On-board HMS ''Ark Royal'' (R09)

After completing his training to become an Aircrew Officer Pilot at

Britannia Royal Naval College Britannia Royal Naval College (BRNC), commonly known as Dartmouth, is the naval academy of the United Kingdom and the initial officer training establishment of the Royal Navy. It is located on a hill overlooking the port of Dartmouth, Devon, En ...

at age 17, he was assigned to anti-submarine operations on-board HMS ''Ark Royal'' with 824 NAS. He flew

Westland Sea King The Westland WS-61 Sea King is a British licence-built version of the American Sikorsky S-61 helicopter of the same name, built by Westland Helicopters. The aircraft differs considerably from the American version, with Rolls-Royce Gnome engin ...

s on operations.

Search and Rescue (SAR)

Following his transfer from anti-submarine warfare operations onboard HMS ''Ark Royal'', he flew with 771 NAS which operated out of

RNAS Culdrose Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose (RNAS Culdrose, also known as HMS ''Seahawk''; ICAO: EGDR) is a Royal Navy airbase near Helston on the Lizard Peninsula of Cornwall UK, and is one of the largest helicopter bases in Europe. Its main role is serv ...

. He served in the SAR role for his last three years in the navy, 1977-1980 which is when he decided to leave the navy. During his time in the search and rescue role, he flew multiple variants of Wessex helicopters. Jerry Grayson had multiple successes while serving as a pilot with 771 NAS. He actively took part with his crew in the hectic Fastnet Race of 1979 when he earned himself the Air Force Cross for his successes in the three day operation. His success in this field made him the most decorated peacetime search and rescue pilot in the Royal Navy. Not only was he the most decorated, he was the youngest ever to be a pilot. At 17, he graduated Britannia Royal Naval Academy in 1972 to become the youngest Royal Navy pilot ever.

M/V ''Skopelos Sky''

M/V ''Skopelos Sky'' was a Greek bulk carrier vessel built in 1961. The vessel was abandoned 15 December 1979 after which it ran aground on the Cornish coast of southwest England. The incident happened during a time which is known for its bad weather conditions in and around the coast of Cornwall. The vessel was carrying lubricant oil en route from Garston to Algiers in Libya. Jerry Grayson and his crew in a Wessex helicopter were scrambled from RNAS Culdrose to a distress call from the M/V ''Skopelos Sky''. The crew were persistent that they could still salvage the ship so they sat on a clifftop watching the situation unfold. Grayson was assisted by an RAF Search and Rescue crew but they returned to base after Grayson and his crew relieved them of their watch. Grayson told the captain of the vessel that time was running out and decided to bluff them by climbing out of sight until the captain called for them to return and get them off the doomed ship. All 15 crew members were hoisted off of the ship. No casualties were suffered from either party.

Awards and honours

Jerry Grayson has been awarded the Air Force Cross in March 1980 for his actions in the Fastnet 1979 Race. Not only has he been awarded the Air Force Cross, he was given a foreign medal from the Hellenic Navy due to his efforts for rescuing the crew of the M/V ''Skopelos Sky'' on 15 December 1979. He was given special disposition for unrestricted wear of the medal by Her Majesty the Queen.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grayson, Jerry Fleet Air Arm aviators 1955 births Living people Recipients of the Air Force Cross (United Kingdom) Helicopter pilots People from Arundel English autobiographers