Ronald McKay was born on 8 December 1906 at Glasgow, Scotland. At an unknown point in time, he immigrated to Australia and settled in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane.

After the outbreak of the Second World War, McKay enlisted to serve in the Second Australian Imperial Force as a private on 3 June 1940 at Kelvin Grove, Brisbane. He joined the 2/15 Australian Infantry Battalion and served with his unit, probably in the Middle East and Northern Africa, before being captured as a prisoner of war of the Germans. McKay was interned in Camp 57, Italy, and Stalag XVIII-A at Spittal an der Drau, Austria.

McKay was discharged in 1945 and returned to live at Brisbane, where he worked as a gatekeeper. His date of death is uncertain.