Robert Samuel "Bobbie" Johnson USAAF   L/C Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star, Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal x3 Born 21 February 1920 in Lawton, Oklahoma Home there, he attended Lawton Public Schools He was an avid hunter, boxer & football player Earned an Engineering degree from Cameron Junior College & was a member of the Civilian Pilot Training program He got his private license in 1939 Joined the USAAF as an Aviation Cadet, summer 1941 Becoming a member of Class 42F, 11 November 1941 Pre Flight Training - Kelly Field, San Antonia, Texas Primary Flying Training - Missouri Institute of Aeronautics Basic Flying Training - Randolph Field, Schertz, Texas Advanced Flying Training - Kelly Field, San Antonia, Texas Finished training 28 June, Winged 3 July, Comm. 9 July He requested Havocs but was sent to the 56FG Reporting to the 61FS 19 July 1942 in Bridgeport, Conn. That unit arriving in the UK, 13 January 1943 After the war he became a test pilot for Republic Aviation Johnson died 27 December 1998 In Stars and Bars, Frank Olynyk lists his gallantry awards as a DSC, a Silver Star, an RAF DFC, 8 US DFCs and 4 Air Medals

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Two Yanks Score 17th Air Victories

LONDON, 7 March 1944 - (AP) - America's two leading fighter aces in the European Theater scored their 17th victories over Berlin yesterday. They are Capt Walker Mahurin, Ft. Wayne, Ind and Lt. Robert Johnson, Lawton, Okla.
Lt Col. Glenn E. Duncan, Houston, Tex., runner-up, closed on the leaders by scoring a double over Berlin to bring his total to 15.

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Yank Ace Gets 3 Nazi Planes
Defense Not Great; Few Fighters Seen

Captain Mahurin

[By The Associated Press] London, 8 March 1944 — Capt. Walker Mahurin, Thunderbolt pilot ace from Fort Wayne, Ind., shot down three German planes today on the Berlin raid, bringing his total score to 20 - a record for this theater and only six under the World War I record of Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker, Mahurin previously had been tied at 17 victories with Lieut. Robert S. Johnson of Lawton, Oklahoma. Mustang fighter pilots who covered the second wave of bombers hitting Berlin today reported they saw only a half dozen German fighters, and shot down three of these. The first report of pilots at this base said the defense was not nearly so intense as that in the battle of Berlin two days ago. Visibility was clear over the German capital. The pilots said the hardest part of their job was the six hour, 1200-mile round trip. Lieut. Col. George R. Bickell, 27, of Nutley, N.J., who led the stout Mustangs on both Berlin raids, said: "We were with the bombers for 40 minutes and saw very little stuff and no more than half a dozen enemy aircraft. It was nowhere near as rough as the other time. For us today, there wasn't anything to it."

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Top European Ace Runs Total of Kills to 20 London, England, 9 March 1944 - (AP) - Capt. Walker Mahurin, a Thunderbolt fighter pilot from Fort Wayne, Ind., emerged from Wednesday's air battle over Germany as the leading American ace of the European theater. He destroyed three German planes to raise his total of victories to 20, six short of the war's record held jointly by Maj. Joseph J Foss and the late Maj. Gregory Boyington, each of whom set his mark in the southwest Pacific. Mahurin was pressed for his lead by Lieut. Robert Johnson of Lawton, Okla., who bagged two Wednesday to reach a total of 19. "Bobbie" Johnson & "Bud" Mahurin

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Oklahoman Is New Ace of European Fighter Pilots

London, 16 Mar. 1944 - (AP) - America's new ace of aces among European theater fighting pilots is Capt. Robert S. Johnson, of Lawton, Okla., who bagged three enemy planes yesterday and sprang into the lead with 22. He is now four short of Eddie Rickenbacker’s record. A 24-year-old former carpenter whose favorite diversion is chess, Johnson knocked down his first German only nine months ago - on June 13. He has thrice scored double victories - October 10, December 31 and February 20 - but yesterday was his first triple. The three kills, all obtained on yesterday's raid on Brunswick, boosted Johnson two beyond this theater's former leader, Capt. Walker Mahurin of Fort Wayne, Ind. For Johnson it was a celebration of his promotion from first lieutenant handed him during the day. "My first one bailed out," Johnson said. "I watched the second hit the ground in the damnedest explosion. The third exploded in the air." Maj. Gerald N. Johnson of Owenton, Ky., moved into a tie for third place with Maj. Walter Beckham of De Funiack Springs, Fla,, who is missing in action, by getting a double and running his string to 18. Mahurin remains second with 20.

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Daylight Attacks Center on Southwest Germany

Robert S. Johnson (left) of Lawton, Okla., leading American fighter ace in Britain with 22 German planes to his credit, chats with his crew chief, Ralph H. Safford of Ionia, Mich., before a take-off from an English base. Johnson says he'd rather fly than eat.

LONDON, 20 March 1944 - (AP) - American bombers, carrying forward the nonstop allied aerial offensive against Adolf Hitler's continental fortress already battered by 20,000 tons of bombs in six days, struck targets in southwest Germany today. The attacking fleet described officially as of medium size - probably 250 to 500 bombers - dumped American bombs on the reich homeland for the fourth time in the six-day, two-way offensive. The heavy bombers were escorted by strong forces of Lightning, Thunderbolt and Mustang fighters of both the Eighth and Ninth United States air forces. Fighter pilots who returned ahead of the bombers said the American attackers flew through bad weather and encountered spotty opposition from German planes. Of the planes which went out from one fighter base a squadron commanded by Major James A. Stewart, Coronado, Calif., was the only one which engaged enemy interceptors. Weather Bad "At times the weather was the worst I ever have seen," said Stewart, who bagged two German planes to bring his total to 12. "There were a few open spots, but not many." A third Nazi plane claimed by Stewart's squadron fell to Lieutenant Dale E. Stream, Grant, Mich., 19-year-old pilot on his ninth mission. It was his second in three days. Captain Robert S. Johnson, Lawton, Okla. leading ace of the European theater who has shot down 22, led one fighter flight, but reported he didn't see one enemy plane. Stewart said his squadron spotted about 40 interceptors flying in perfect formation. "We got on their tail and they scattered like flies," he said. "All of them dived into the clouds and then some of them pulled out. I chased one down to within 50 feet of the ground where I got him."

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All Good, and Alive, Fighter Pilots Have Chronic Stiff Neck

At a United States Fighter Station, England, 1 April 1944 - (INS) - All good, and alive, fighter pilots have an occupation disease - chronic stiff neck.
The two ace of aces in the European theater, Major Walker Mahurin, of Fort Wayne. Ind. and Captain Robert S. Johnson, of Lawton, Okla., as well as all the other boys with five or more enemy planes to their credit, complain of stiff necks and the necessity of buying new shirts with larger collars after six months of combat flying.
"The most important thing to a fighter pilot is the ability to turn his head almost completely around without moving his shoulders," Bob Johnson states. "I've got so I can turn my head so quickly in the opposite direction that my goggles remain static."
The talent for a quick look-see at the sky directly to the rear of the plane has saved the ace fighters more times than any of them can recall off-hand.
New pilots are inclined to forget to see what's coming up behind and this accounts for a lot of close calls and upset plans.

Newcomers Are Watched
The veterans always keep a watchful eye on the newcomers and inevitably just when they have a nice batch of three or more Nazis all lined up for a quick trip to Valhalla the fledgling gets a Messerschmitt or Focke-Wulf on his tail. Then the veteran must fling aside his beautiful program of destruction and zoom to the rescue of the blithely unaware newcomer.
A Nazi on the tail is dangerous business. Only constant, quick looks at the tail region will keep a fighter pilot out of trouble. Fortunately, the Thunderbolts flown by this group can outrun, out-climb and out-turn anything the Nazis have been able to put up thus far. The distance between life and death is sufficient for the rescuer to arrive and dispatch the Jerry to his fatherland.
Every experienced pilot here swears he takes a collar at least one size larger than his pre-war model and is forever rubbing the back of his neck with a pained grimace. But a pain in the neck is bearable compared with getting a free trip to Germany - or worse.
The fighter boys are amazingly free of superstitions - except for the practical one of taking a look to the rear - no matter how safe they might feel. Quite a few wear St. Christopher medals, but mostly because a girl friend or wife did the gifting. A few have "lucky" flying boots. But they are a solid, thinking lot. No voodoo, no taboos, no eccentric ways.

Many Are Married
At nightfall they gather in the hut that serves as the officers' mess, have a quiet highball, go to dinner and afterwards either sit around and chew the rag or go to a movie at the station - if there is one to be seen.
Only after a big and spectacular operation do they come even close to resembling the fictitious young men who tear the town apart, drink themselves under the table in honor of a departed comrade and are the very devil with the women.
More than a few are married and wear gold wedding bands to prove it, never retire later than 10 p.m., swear infrequently and not very seriously, are quiet, soft-spoken boys with a vast capacity for reading and arguing about the relative merits of planes and combat tactics. They do a lot of remembering other missions and a lot of planning for the next one.
The ranking officers and the commanding officer, Colonel Hubert Zemke live in a small severely utilitarian hut, sleep in double-deckers, have a small sitting room with an ancient radio-phonograph in it, and a casual orderly who cleans up the place and sometimes presses pants.
There is nothing fancy, lavish or even moderately elegant about it - but the hut, tagged the "wheel-house" by the junior officers, is warm. This is a lot in England which is perpetually cold and damp.
Once in a while the station holds a dance - the girls are usually from reasonably nearby towns and mostly uniform. American girls are preferred - but very scarce and British ATS. WAAFs and WRENs make up the bulk of the belle line. The station band is good and the officers move out of their dank and dingy quarters in a faded British manor hall to make way for the girls staying overnight.

Girls Love It
For the enlisted men there is a Red Cross canteen and two whole American girls in Red Cross uniforms. These two are undoubtedly the most rushed girls in England and love it.
Transportation around the station is a problem and bicycles are the principal solution. A few of the most senior of the senior officers have staff cars or jeeps at their disposal — but very few. There is plenty of plain putting one foot after another to get places.
On big leaves, the officers as well as the ground crews, usually head for London and a brief but satisfactory binge of sight-seeing and night-clubbing - though London night clubs bear only incidental resemblance to the American gay spots.
The fighter pilot is usually somewhere between 20 and 26. On very close inspection over a period of time, it is accurate to state that he is an extremely polite boy and has a well-developed sense of humor with a dash of fatalism.
When one of his pals gets it from the enemy he takes it matter-of-factly but he is neither so hardhearted nor as sentimental as varying movies would have you believe. He himself does not expect or anticipate any such abrupt ending to life but is equipped mentally and spiritually to face the fact of death daily.
The constant strain and nervous tension of gambling with life sooner or later tells on a fighter pilot. Then he is sent to a rest home. This is a beautiful country place in England where pilots can rest, relax and unwind and after a couple of months of almost daily combat flying, most pilots take a tour of duty at the rest home.
If they stay on the station and are grounded by the flight surgeon because of nervous exhaustion, they go crazy every time the group goes off to escort the bombers on a mission.
"I'd go nuts sitting around sweating it out while the guys were over there mixing it up with the Jerries," they explain.
The fighter pilots at this station have the finest record in the European theater for cleaning house on the Luftwaffe - but they don't brag and there is no such thing to them as a "hero" - but they are heroes nonetheless.

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Pilot Claims He Has Toll of 27 Planes

A United States Fighter Base In England, 7 April 1944 - (AP) - Capt. Don S. Gentile, 23 year old Mustang pilot from Piqua, Ohio, Friday claimed he had destroyed 27 enemy planes, 19 in combat and eight on the ground.
Gentile had destroyed 22 when he took off Wednesday for a fighter sweep over Berlin. His 22 total tied him with Capt. Robert S. Johnson of Lawton, Okla., for leadership among American aces in the European theater of operations.
When he climbed out of his 425 mile an hour Mustang, a few hours later, Gentile submitted reports of five more planes destroyed on the ground. Three of these he claimed for himself, the other two he shared with his regular wingman, Lieut. Johnny Godfrey of Woonsocket, R. I.
American pilots contend that it is a harder trick to destroy planes on the ground than to down enemy planes in the air, because of the hail of gunfire met in diving down and sweeping over a German airfield.

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FOES LOSE IN AIR TO AMERICAN ACES
Capt. Bong's 27 Planes Downed in Combat Puts Him at Top

(By The Associated Press) 13 April 1944 - Today's Southwest Pacific headquarters announcement that Capt. Richard Ira Bong has downed 27 enemy planes in combat makes him the leading American ace in number of planes shot down in combat, but second to Capt. Don S. Gentile of the European theater in the number destroyed both in the air and on the ground.
Gentile, the Piqua Ohio fighter pilot who flies from Britain, is credited with 30 planes destroyed — 23 shot from the skies and seven others destroyed on the ground.
Bong, who lives at Poplar, Wis., broke Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker's long-standing record of 26 planes shot down in combat in World War I by getting his 26th and 27th enemy plane over the Japanese base at Hollandia, New Guinea.
Only planes destroyed in aerial combat are tallied in the Pacific theater while all planes destroyed, both on the ground and in combat, are credited to Eighth air force fliers in Britain, the Navy keeps no official counts of individual victories but Lt. (jg) Ira Kepford of Muskegon, Mich., is credited with 16 Japanese planes.
The Marine record of 26 planes downed is held jointly by Maj. Joe Foss of Sioux Falls, S.D. and Maj. Gregory Boyington of Okanogan, Wash., who is missing in action.
Nineteen other Army, Navy and Marine Corps fliers have destroyed 15 or more enemy planes, and while Mediterranean theater records list no fliers among the top 24 with 15 or more planes to their credit, the two leaders there are Maj. Herschel Green of Mayfield, Ky., with 13 and Lt William J. Sloan of Richmond, Va. with 12.
The leading aces are:
European theater: Capt. Don S. Gentile, Piqua, Oh., 30; Capt. Robert S. Johnson, Lawton, Okla., 22; Capt. Duane W. Beeson, Boise, Ida., 21; Maj. Walker Mahurin, Fort Wayne, Ind., (missing) 21; Maj. Gerald Johnson, Owenton, Ky., (missing) 18; Maj. Walter Beckham, De Funiak Springs, Fla., (missing) 18; Maj. Francis S. Gabreski, Oil City, Pa., 17; and Lt.-Col. Glenn E. Duncan, Houston, Tex., 15.
Pacific (Army): Capt. Richard Bong, Popular, Wis., 27; Col. Neel E. Kearby, San Antonio, Tex., (missing) 21; Lt.-Col. Thomas J. Lynch, Catasauqua, Pa., (dead) 19; Capt. Thomas B. McGuire, Jr., San Antonio, Tex., 17; Maj. Robert Westbrook, Hollywood, Calif., 16 and Maj. George S. Welch, Wilmington, Del., 16.
Pacific (Marines): Maj. Joe Foss, Sioux Falls, S.D., 26; Maj. Gregory Boyington, Okanogan, Wash., (missing) 26; Lt. Robert Hanson, Newtonville, Mass., (missing) 26; Capt. Donald Aldrich, Chicago, 20; Lt. Kenneth Walsh, Brooklyn and Washington, 20; Lt.-Col. John L. Smith, Lexington, Okla., 19; Maj. M. E. Carl, Hubbard, Ore., 17; Lt. William J. Thomas, El Dorado, Kan., 16 and Capt. Harold R. Spears of Ironton, Ohio with 15.

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Mothers, Sons Paid Tribute In Broadcast

CHICAGO, 15 April 1944 - (AP) - Three American women - mothers of three of the country's outstanding air heroes - paid tribute yesterday to all American mothers and their sons on a "Mothers for Victory" broadcast over the Blue network. They were Mrs. Patsy Gentile, Piqua, O., mother of Capt. Don Gentile, credited with 30 Nazi planes; Mrs. Dora Bong Poplar, Wis., whose son, Maj. Richard Bong, knocked out 27 Jap planes; and Mrs. L. B. Johnson, Lawton, Okla., mother of Capt. Robert S. Johnson, who brought down 27 enemy planes over Europe.
Major Bong took part in the broadcast with his mother here. The other two women had received word their boys were returning home on furloughs. A fourth mother, Mrs. Marry Vincent Parle, spoke on the program from Omaha, Neb. Unlike the other three, she had no hopes for her son's return. Ensign John Parle was killed in action during the invasion of Sicily and her message was addressed to the crew of the USS Parle, a destroyer named after him.
The Chicago Herald-American and the New York Journal-American sponsored the program.

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Four Grounded, So Ace Field Is Wide Open
Oil City Man Is High Among 'Eligibles'

By UNITED PRESS, 18 April 1944 - The field is wide open for a new leading American fighter ace. Four of the top ranking fliers today were grounded for various reasons. These aces and their records are:
Capt. Don S. Gentile, Piqua, O., credited with 30 planes, including seven destroyed on the ground in daring sweeps over enemy airdromes in the European Theater.
Maj. Richard I. Bong, Poplar, Wis., credited with 27 air victories in the Southwest Pacific area.
Maj. Joe Foss, Sioux Falls, S.D., credited with 26 victories in the Southwest Pacific.
Capt. Bob Johnson, Lawton, Okla., who has shot down 25 Nazi planes in combat. Only 22 of them have been confirmed, however, with three pending.

Great Risks Emphasized
Should he eventually receive credit for those three, Capt. Johnson, along with Maj. Bong and Maj. Foss, would top Capt. Gentile if only planes shot down in combat were counted.
But some fliers contend this would not be altogether fair because fighters take even greater proportionate risks to bag planes on enemy airfields than they do in dogfights in the sub-stratosphere. The danger from anti-aircraft fire, they say, justifies counting ground destructions even though this is not done in other theaters.
Capt. Gentile is going away for a short rest starting sometime today. He has served his tour of duty several times and has more than 350 combat hours behind him.
Maj. Bong likewise has been ordered to rest after running up his "ace of aces" string of 27 combat victories.
Maj. Foss has been given a ground and instructional assignment utilizing his experience as a teacher, after returning to the Southwest Pacific from home leave.
Capt. Johnson has completed his tour of duty and is not likely to return to active service.

Oil City Man Rates High
Leading contenders in the European Theater include Lt. Col. Francis Gabreski, Oil City, Pa., who has shot down 28 planes in combat and has been credited with destroying two on the ground; Col. Glen Duncan, Houston, Tex., who has a 17 total, 16 of them in combat, and Lt. Col. David Schilling, Detroit, who has shot down 15.

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In Tie With Ace of Aces - Britain - this exclusive picture was made after captain Robert S. Johnson of lawton, OKla., had shot down his 25TH~Nazi plane to become the no. 1 U.S. fighter pilot in the European Theatre of Operations. It shows personnel of his fighter-station in England carrying him from his fighter plane. Today, May 8, Captain Johnson shot down his 26th and 27th enemy planes to tie the record of Major Richard I. Bong, who was Ace of Aces with 27 enemy planes to his credit. (Gabby Gabreski is far left)

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Squadron mates toast Johnson's 27th victory. Bud Mahurin is on Bob's right with his hand on his shoulder.

Thunderbolt Pilot Gets His 27th Kill In Air To Pass Rickenbacker Mark

By The Associated Press. A U.S. FIGHTER BASE IN ENGLAND, 8 May 1944 - Capt. Robert S. Johnson of Lawton, Okla. a Thunderbolt pilot, shot down two enemy planes over Germany today to boost his total to 27 - all bagged in the air - and became the first American ace in the European theater to break Captain Edward Rickenbacker's combat record of 26 aerial kills in World War I.
Capt. Johnson thus tied the record set in the southwest Pacific theater by Maj. Richard I. Bong, 23, of Poplar, Wis.
Capt. Johnson's two kills today still were unofficial, but there was little doubt they would be confirmed. He is a member of the famous Thunderbolt unit commanded by Col. Hubert Zemke of Missoula, Mont., which claimed a total of six Germans downed today in the European theater. Capt. Don Gentile of Piqua, O., now on home leave, holds the record of enemy planes destroyed by an American pilot with a total score of 30, of which seven were destroyed on the ground.
Capt. Johnson, a stubby, blond youngster who asked for 25 additional hours of combat duty after completing his regular tour, and Maj. Bong are the only Americans who have bettered Rickenbacker's mark strictly in air combat.
Maj. Bong, a Lightning pilot, was the first to break that record, although both Maj. Gregory Boyington of Okanogan, Wash., now missing, and Marine Maj. Joe Foss of Sioux Falls, S.D., who is not now on active flying duty, had equaled Rickenbacker's 26 in their careers in the Pacific area. Maj. Bong also has nine probables which went down smoking but were not seen to crash and thus have not been tallied as planes destroyed,
Capt. Johnson, who is 24, had brought his score to 25 by mid-April, including six planes downed over Berlin. The location of his kills today was not disclosed immediately.
He is regarded as a cool, deadly pilot and is confident but not cocky about his flying ability. He once remarked that a fighter pilot needed "good eyes and a good neck" to survive.
"If you haven't those, you are a goner," he said. Capt. Johnson first flew solo in a plane when he was only 14 and obtained a civilian pilot license in 1939. He was a carpenter and woodworker before joining the army.
He was an amateur boxer also - he weighs 165 pounds - and likes to talk in boxing terms. He disagrees with those who say the enemy air force is destroyed or weakened to a point of defeat, for "this thing is like a 15-round fight, and in my opinion we still have 13 rounds to go.”
"Anytime you underestimate an opponent," he said recently, "you are going to get knocked on your backsides."
Young Johnson has been shot up three times. His fellow fliers credit his courage and flying skill with keeping him alive. He thinks Nazi pilots are "no better or no worse than Americans,” but believes they lack initiative.
Two RAF aces have topped the highest American score. Group Capt. A.G. Malan has downed 32 planes, as did the late Flight Lt Brendan (Paddy) Finucane. Malan now is on ground duty.
Flight Lt. George (Screwball) Beurling, a Canadian, has shot down 31. He is not on active flying duty now.
Wing Commander J.R.D. Braham of the RAF shot down his 28th German plane near Copenhagen yesterday, tying Wing Commander J.E. (Johnny) Johnson, who got his 28th over France Friday. Another RAF pilot, Wing Commander Stanford Tuck, bagged 29, but he now is a prisoner of war.

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JOHNSON'S PRETTY WIFE PROUD OF HUSBAND

LAWTON. Okla., 8 May - (AP) - Pretty Barbara Johnson heard with a proud smile today the news that her husband, Captain Robert S. Johnson, had won new laurels as an ace lighter pilot and said she was glad- "because I know it makes him feel good."
Then the 21 year-old wife went to work as usual at a drug store where she is a bookkeeper.
"Being the wife of a flyer who has broken the World War I combat record in the European theater by bagging his 27th plane in combat has its advantages, Mrs. Johnson reflected. She knows he is all right "because the newspapers keep me informed of what he is doing right up to the minute."
The blond youngster who grew up in Lawton, hasn’t seen his wife and his parents, Mr. and Mrs. L. B. Johnson, for 16 months. He turned down a recent opportunity to come home, choosing to continue the fight. He writes two or three times a week.

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RICKENBACKER SENDS HIS CONGRATULATIONS

RALEIGH, N.C., 8 May (AP) — Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker sent his congratulations today to Capt. Robert S. Johnson, a Thunderbolt pilot who has shot down 27 planes in the European theater and thus bettered by one the World War ace's record, he messaged Capt. Johnson: "Heartiest congratulations on your latest victories and your ability to break my World War One record which I expect to be broken by many pilots and possibly doubled or trebled before victory comes.
“However, in your future combats use the same cool, calculating ability shown to dale for we want you and others like you home again."
Rickenbacker has speaking engagements in North Carolina today and tomorrow.

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JOHNSON TIES BONG’S ACE MARK
TELLS OF DOWNING NAZIS NUMBER 26 & 27
Capt. Robert Johnson First Yank to Surpass Rick’s Record in European Air

AIR ACE JOHNSON CHECKS SHIP WITH HIS CREW CHIEF Capt. Robert Johnson or Lawton, Okla., (left) new ace fighter pilot in the European Theater, checks with is crew chief Staff Sgt. J. C. Penrod, Newark, N.J.,  on the condition of his Thunderbolt plane which now has 27 crosses on it’s side.(AP wire photo)

(EDITOR'S NOTE: Here Is Capt. Robert S. Johnson’s own story of how he destroyed two German planes Monday—his 26th and 27th—thus becoming, unofficially, the first American pilot in Europe to surpass Capt. Edward Rickenbacker's World War I record of 26 aircraft shot down in air combat.) By CAPT. ROBERT S. JOHNSON (As told to Associated Press War Correspondent Austin Bealmear) A U.S. FIGHTER BASE, ENGLAND, 9 May 1944 — (AP) — Today was like most of the other rough days as far as the opposition went. About all you can say is that we just flew over there. Everything was quiet for quite a way. We were looking for enemy planes. I saw a lot of smoke and at the end of it a bomber was going down. I started toward it and saw an enemy plane diving underneath. There were two Thunderbolts trying to get on it. I pulled into a turn and fired on this plane — but nothing happened. Then he tried to outrun me. We started spiraling down and I hit him several times. When one of his wings came off I figured he'd “had it.” My wingman, Lt. Harold E. Hartney jr., Great Neck, L.I., started through a cloud chasing two Focke-Wulfs and came out with three Focke-Wulfs and an ME-109 on his trail. He was yelling for help and I told him to climb and turn. He did and I made some head-on passes and chased them away. Another was going after my wingman and I let him have it to scare him off. It was lucky - I hit him in the engine. He rolled over and went down in smoke. When we got home, Capt. Barnham - Eugene Barnham of Albion, N.Y. - said he saw the plane I last hit spiral out of a cloud and burst into flames. I’ve got a lot of respect for the Thunderbolt. It is the world's best airplane. It’s just like Joe Louis - it can dish it out and can take it. The plane I had today was my fifth Thunderbolt. I have been shot up three times - but always got back. I’ve been jumped 27 times. Twice they weren't firing. The other 25 times they were.

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Bride of Air Ace Will Meet Hubby

LAWTON. Okla., May 11. (AP) — Soft-voiced Barbara Morgan Johnson set out today for New York city and the adventure of welcoming back her 24-year-old husband who went to the wars and is returning a hero - Captain Robert S. Johnson, leading American air ace in the European theater.
They were married in February, 1942, after a college romance, but it has been 13 months since the sandy-haired bride kissed Bob goodbye at an eastern port and he started on the fighting career that has netted him 27 German planes shot down.
She was invited to be in New York as the guest of the manufacturer of Bob's Thunderbolt fighter awaiting his arrival. She doesn't know when that will be.

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Leading U.S. Ace in Britain Tells Own Story of His Sky Victories
Capt. Johnson Almost Baled Out in France

By CAPT. ROBERT S. JOHNSON
HEADQUARTERS, EIGHTH FIGHTER COMMAND, Britain, May 11 — (Special) — Shooting down enemy planes is largely a matter of teamwork. There is also more than a little luck involved.
If it hadn’t been for the fact that the canopy stuck so that I couldn't open it, I would have bailed out over France in one of my earliest missions. But we will get to that later.
I have been interested in flying ever since I was eight years old. They brought a big air show to my home town, Lawton, Okla. They packed the field with little old biplane fighters and big old biplane bombers. They put on a show. There was one huge dogfight almost on the ground. Right then and there I decided I wanted to be an Army pilot.
The first time I ever went up in a plane I was 4. It was a little old biplane, with two seats side by side. I soloed just before I was 15. I was going to high school then and working in a cabinet maker's shop after school. I earned $4 a week and spent three of it for flying. After that I got out of school and went to Cameron Junior College where I studied aeronautical engineering.

Didn't Wait for Leader
I arrived in England early to January, 1943. Our first mission was short and sweet. We hit the Dutch coast at 35,000 feet. We went in wide open and came out. It didn't last more than an hour and a half. We didn't even see any fighters.
The first time I got a shot at a Jerry was on the next mission. It was the first mission on which we escorted our bombers. It was a huge bomber force for those days— maybe 50 heavies. On the way out we were attacked by eight German planes. I had not seen enough action to be afraid then. I couldn't realize that we were playing for keeps. I just fired at the lead plane and missed him so far it was pitiful.

Gun Jams
Then I released the trigger. But it was stuck. The gun kept on firing. I kept on trying to release my gun and the last two German planes flew through them. I didn't know what had happened. I was too busy trying to get back into formation. I didn’t claim anything but the pictures showed that my jammed gun had damaged two German planes.
It is lucky I am not superstitious because the first kill came on July 13—on my 13th mission. We were going on a sweep near Ostend when we saw 12 to 15 Jerries three or four thousand feet below us. I should have waited for my leader to dive on them (fighter warfare is team warfare if you want to live to a ripe old age) but I was too excited to wait. I just rolled over and yelled, "Come with me!” and went down. Jerry blew up.

Trapped in Burning Plane
Thirteen days later—another 13— was the closest call I ever had or even want to have. Sixteen Germans jumped our eight and beat the hell out of us. I got five 20 mm shells in my right wing, four to the left, two in the fuselage, two through the tail, two tore off half my rudder, three nicked the armor plate right behind my head. In addition, the ship was riddled with 30-caliber bullets. One of them tore the watch off my wrist.
I got cut up a little around the face and hands. The plane caught fire and it burned me a little. About the best way to tell how badly off I was is to say that I tried to open the canopy and bail out over France. It was stuck and I couldn't. I half broke my hand trying to get it open to jump. That's the luckiest thing that ever happened to me—that canopy sticking.
I was a little more wary and scared after that. In fact, each mission I flew got tougher, but I was lucky enough to get hit on only three other missions out of the 93 I flew.
My luckiest day was March 15th when we were escorting heavies over Berlin. We ran into about 150 Focke-Wulfs and Messerschmitts. There were 10 of us. There was nothing to do but to take on the Jerries and scream for help. We did both. By the time I had a chance to think it over I had gotten three.

Chalks Up Two More
I got my 25th German plane on April 13—another 13, I was mad on the next few missions after that because Jerry kept staying on the ground. That does not mean that the Germans are through. Some of them seem green these days, of course. But there are still plenty of veterans left.
I got my lucky break on May 8 escorting our heavy bombers to Berlin. I saw a bomber go down and went over to see what had happened. A Messerschmitt 109 dived under me. I rolled over my Republic Thunderbolt and got him. Then I pulled up and my element leader saw two more. He went after them and I went along to help. He chased them under a cloud. When he came out there were four Jerries on his tail. I went down to help and got one of them.
Then we rounded up our element and went home. Our gas was getting low. I was glad. It was getting late in the morning and I was pretty hungry.

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TOP ACE TELLS OF WORST JAM
He Was “As Good as Dead,” Yet Made It to England

By IRA WOLFERT (Released by North American Newspaper Alliance)
EIGHTH AIR FORCE FIGHTER BASE, England, May 15. — "Every fellow who is busy out here has a moment he can pick out and say about it that here was when he was busiest and hopes to the good Lord Almighty that he never will be as busy as that again as long as he lives."
This is Captain Robert Johnson talking, Thunderbolt pilot who shot 27 Huns out of the air, more than any other American in two wars.
“I have to go back all the way to June of last year for my busiest moment," continued the Lawton, Okla. boy.

It Came in a Second
"All in one second the plane was full of holes, the cockpit was on fire, the engine groaning and blupping like a stepped-on bullfrog. The plexi-glass was ripped from all of the canopy. There were shell fragments in my left hand. Then I heard that high sucked-in ping you hear when a bullet goes off in your ear and I turned my head quick away from it, pressed my face flat against the armor plate in the back of my seat and all I got out of that burst was a crease across my nose.
I was falling. A box of our bombers was going along right under me and I fell plumb through them. I couldn't see a thing. The hydraulic fluid was filling up the cockpit, blowing up all over me and into my eyes, and black oil covered the windshield an inch thick.”

He Couldn't Get Out
"I stood up in my seat to pull off the canopy and get out. The canopy wouldn’t come off—it was jammed solid.
I was past fear then. This time I had already had it. I felt dead and that I was just sitting there waiting for formal notification of the fact. Do you know what happened then? My motor caught. The blupping stopped and it was spitting, then made a saucy little purr and I headed south.
I had leveled off at about 19,000 feet. My oxygen had been shot out and I was half drunk from lack of it.
I thought the hell with going down in France. I'll go down in the channel and Barbara will have all that less time to worry in.
All this time the hydraulic fluid was pumping up in my eyes, blinding me and as I stuck my head out into the wind, to blow my vision free, the wind nearly knocked my head off but it cleared my eyes.”

He Sees Trouble
“Then, just when I saw the French coast, I saw this Focke-Wulf all by himself enjoying the afternoon sun.
He came sauntering over for a look. He came up very close to me, hung just back of my wing and looked me over carefully. I looked back at him and thought come on you ______ , get it over with. There was nothing I could do.
We were over Dieppe then and I thought, well anyway he's saving my life for a minute longer. Because Dieppe had flak that would have blown me apart in no time and not a gun fired on account of they saw the Hun and didn't want to hurt him. I'm not so sure yet just what that Hun had in mind.”

"Goodbye, Victim!"
“In the end I think he felt sorry for me that I had made it such a long, long way and then, when I was so close to home he had come along. Anyway he pulled up alongside and waved to me. I waved back. I didn't know what he had in mind. Is he going to give me a chance to go down in the channel, I thought?
But that wasn’t it. He was just saying goodbye to a hard-luck guy before killing him off because what he did after exchanging waves with me was to drop back on my tail, line me up for a dead astern shot and then press the trigger. I just leaned back tired against the back of my seat and waited. The fellow threw paper at me, just 30-caliber stuff. He put so many holes into me nobody ever did count them, but he never hit a vital spot.
All he did was to ginger me up and I threw off this sick, dead feeling I had and turned into him. By God, I thought, I've got airplane enough left to ram you and take you with me anyway! But he broke away and he came back on my tail, peppered me some more and I turned into him again and again, three times altogether. Finally he ran out of ammunition and went back home."

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"BIG SHOW" LOST TO FIGHTER ACE
Bad as Twisting Ankle Before Rose Bowl Game

WASHINGTON, June 7, 1944 - (AP) - A stubby Oklahoma boy, Major Robert Johnson, who went to war about two years ago well known as a Golden Gloves boxer and football player, came back today as America's fighter ace of the European theater, full of regret that he is missing the "big show" just begun.
Johnson told a press conference that the "way I look at It." teamwork is destroying the German Luftwaffe, and every wingman "is a leader" in his own right.

Like Twisting Ankle
A radio announcement as he was preparing to leave England was Johnson's first intimation that the liberation of Europe had begun, and he said leaving then was like "twisting an ankle" on the eve of a Rose Bowl game.
The Oklahoman, who has 27 combat "kills" and several probables to his credit, shot down his 26th and 27th planes May 9 on his last mission a little less than a year after he bagged his first. The first victory came June 13, 1943, on his 30th mission.
"Thirteen days later I got shot up." he grinned.
In his combat tour he piloted five fighters, including his good- luck ship, appropriately named "Lucky," in which he "got 19, one probable and four damaged."

Sorry for Ground Crews
Lack of recognition accorded air force ground crews is one of "my principal sore points," Johnson said.
"Those watch us take off, think we aren't coming back and that we lake all the risk, while we think we have all the fun and all they get is stripes. We get the citations."
Sixteen decorations adorn the Oklahoman's chest, one being the purple heart, which he received last June 26 when shot up in combat, tried to bail out, broke his fist against the canopy, and finally managed to fly his plane back to England when he could not get out to jump.
Johnson told of another flight in which Captain Johnny Eaves, Edmond, Okla., with whom he has huddled since their training days, tackled 30 Messerschmitts, "got a couple of them, one probably and hit three others."

In Hell of a Fight
His first warning of the battle, Johnson said, was Eaves' voice on the radio:
"I'm down here with about 30 of them. It's going to be a hell of a fight."
It was, Johnson told a reporter, that "Eaves will be coming home soon, probably."
About a year ago, when "Goering's outfit" was at its height, Johnson said, German flyers were almost a match for Americans, but the "longer we go the more wary they become." After a pilot has been "knocked out of the skies two or three times" he becomes more cautious, the flyer said.

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Ace Flyer Gives Sports Credit
Major Johnson Says Athletics Big Help

WASHINGTON, 9 June 1944 — (AP) — Major Robert Johnson, America’s ace air combat fighter of the European theater and a Golden Gloves boxer and football player in his school days, went to bat today for competitive sports, declaring that he might not have survived his 102 sorties without an athletic background. Everybody knows, he said, that the American way in sports teaches team play, but “what a fellow doesn't realize until a German bears down on his tail is that he has learned to never give up.” Like Grid Game “Fighting those Jerries is just like playing a football game,” said the 165-pound 24-year-old Oklahoman with 27 "kills'' to his credit. “And who wants to be on a losing team? You go on trying because you never can tell when you'll get a break.” That was the way Johnson felt last June 26 when his plane was so badly shot up over Germany that he "really got scared for the first time in my life," but he refused to give up, and somehow brought his Thunderbolt back to English soil. “The way I figure it — the way you learn in our sports — is that the other guy is no better than you are,” the Lawton, Okla., youth said.

Robert Johnson at the Republic plant that made his P-47

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Two Now Tied For U. S. Ace Honors

AN EIGHTH AIR FORCE FIGHTER BASE IN ENGLAND, June 28, 1944 (INS) — Lieut.-Col. Francis S. Gabreski of Oil City, Pa., pilot of a P-47 Thunderbolt, today was tied with Maj. Robert Johnson of Lawton, Okla., for top-ranking destroyer of enemy planes in aerial combat.
Gabreski shot down a Messerschmitt 109 over France Tuesday, officials revealed, to boost his total destroyed in the air to 27 craft. Johnson, a group-mate now on leave in the United States, also has shot down 27 Nazi planes.
Gabreski also holds credit for two German craft demolished on the ground.

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TOP YANKEE ACE GETS 28th NAZI

A U.S. EIGHTH AIR FORCE FIGHTER BASE IN BRITAIN. July 5, 1944 —(AP)— Lt. Col. Francis Gabreski of Oil City, Pa., became the top scoring U.S. Army air force fighter pilot today by shooting down his 28th plane near Evreux, France.
This latest victory for the Thunderbolt pilot came after he drew a blank yesterday when his flight failed to sight a German plane.
Two other American fighter pilots, Maj. Robert S. Johnson of Lawton, Okla., and Maj. Richard I. Bong of Poplar, Wis., have shot down 27 enemy planes apiece. Gabreski's 28th was a Messerschmitt 109.

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34 Army Air Force Aces Have Score of 15 or More
Maj. Bong Leads List with 40 Enemy Planes; Colonels Gabreski, Lynch Also Included

WASHINGTON, 22 Dec. 1944 (UP) — An honor roll of 34 Army Air Force fighter aces, each of whom has destroyed 15 or more enemy planes in combat, was issued by the War Department today and at the top of the list was Maj. Richard I Bong, of Poplar, Wis.
Among them, they have shot down a total of 689¼ German and Jap planes.
The Eighth Air Force, which operates in Europe against the Germans, had the most aces — 13 — with scores of 15 or better kills. The Fifth Air Force, operating in the Southwest Pacific, was next with 10, but it boasted the two top men - Maj. Bong and Maj. Thomas B. McGuire, of San Antonio, Tex., who has bagged 30 Jap planes.
Next in line were the 15th Air Force which operates in the Mediterranean and has four aces in the select circle; the Ninth which operates in Europe and has three top-ranking aces, and the 13th (based in the South Pacific) and the 14th (based in China) each with two.
Maj. Bong is credited with 38 kills but since the list was tabulated Dec. 15, he has run his bag to 40.
Other high ranking fighter pilots and their scores were:

Lt. Col. Francis S. Gabreski, of 95 Spruce St., Oil City, Pa., Eighth A.F., 28 (POW in Germany)
Maj. Robert S. Johnson, Lawton, Okla., Eighth A.F., 27.
Maj. George E. Preddy, Greensboro, N.C., Eighth A.F., 24.
Capt. Don S. Gentile, Piqua, O., Eighth A.F., 23.
Maj. Gerald T. Johnson, Eugene, Ore., Fifth A.F., 23.
Maj. Fred J. Christensen Jr., Watertown, Mass., Eighth A. F., 22.
Col. Neel E. Kearby, Dallas. Tex., Fifth A. F., 22. (Missing in action).
Col. Glenn E. Duncan, Houston, Tex., Eighth A.F., 21 1/2 (Missing in action).
Capt. John J. Voll, Goshen, O., 15th A.F., 21.
Maj. Walker M. Mahurin, Fort Wayne, Ind., Eighth A.F., 21.
Maj. Jay T. Robbins, Coolidge, Tex., Fifth A.F., 21.
Lt. Col. Robert B. Westbrook, Hollywood, Cal., 13th A.F., 20.
Col. Charles H. MacDonald, St. Petersburg. Fla., Fifth A.F., 20.
Lt. Col. Thomas J. Lynch, of Catasauqua, Pa., Fifth A.F. 26, (killed in action)
[Col. Lynch was an engineering student at the University of Pittsburgh and was graduated in
1940. His widow, a Swissvale resident, was the former Rosemary Fullen, of 7368 Schley Ave.]
Col. Hubert Zemke, Missoula, Mont., Eighth, 19 1/2.
Lt. Col. David C. Schilling, Traverse City, Mich., Eighth, 19.
Col. David L. Hill, Victoria, Tex., 14th A.F., 18 1/2.
Capt. John T. Godfrey, Woonsocket, R. I., Eighth, 18 (prisoner of war in Germany).
Lt. Col. Herschel H. Green, Mayfield, Ky., 15th A.F., 18.
Capt. Duane W. Beesen, Boise, Ida., Eighth, 18 (prisoner of war in Germany).
Maj. Walker Carl Beckham, Defuniak Springs, Fla., Eighth, 18 (prisoner of war in Germany).
Maj. Don M. Beerbower, Hill City, Minn., Ninth A.F., 17 1/2 (killed in action).
Capt. James S. Varnell, Charleston, Tenn., 15th, 17.
Capt. Cyril F. Homer, Sacramento, Cal., Fifth, 17.
Maj. Edward Cragg, Cos Cob, Conn., Fifth, 17 (missing in action).
Capt. Glen T. Eagleston, Alhambra, Cal., Ninth, 16 1/2.
Lt Col. William N. Reed. Marion, Ia., 14th, 16 1/2.
Maj. George S. Welch, Wilmington, Del., Fifth, 16.
Lt. Col. Richard E. Turner, Bartlesville, Okla., Ninth, 16.
Maj. Samuel J. Brown, Tulsa, Okla., 15th, 15 1/2.
Maj. Bill Harris, Springville, Cal., 13th A.F., 15.
Capt. Richard A. Peterson, Alexandria, Minn., Eighth, 15.

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Victories Include :

27 / 0 / 3

"Never have I seen so beautiful an airplane. A rich, dappled blue, from a dark, threatening thunderstorm to a light sky blue.
The cowling is a brilliant, gleaming yellow. Beautiful, and Death on the wing. A Focke-Wulf 190." -Robert Johnson

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Fighter Pilot Who Downed 27 Planes in WWII Dies

By Richard Goldstein, New York Times, 2 January 1999 - Robert S. Johnson, an 8th Air Force fighter pilot who shot down 27 German planes in an 11-month span during World War II and then came home to a hero's welcome from President Franklin D. Roosevelt, died on Sunday at St. Francis Hospital in Tulsa, Okla. He was 78 and was the second-leading American air ace of the war in Europe.
Protecting Flying Fortress bombers on their missions deep into Germany in his barrel-nosed P-47 Thunderbolt fighters, Johnson was the second World War II fighter pilot to break the U.S. record of 26 air "victories" set by Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker in World War I. He accomplished that feat when he knocked down two Luftwaffe fighters near Brunswick, Germany, on May 8, 1944, on his final mission.
His squadron commander in the 56th Fighter Group, Lt. Col. Francis Gabreski, was the only U.S. fighter pilot in Europe with more "kills," having shot down 28 German planes and destroyed three more on the ground. Major Richard Bong of the Army Air Forces, the first pilot to break Rickenbacker's mark, was the leading American ace of the entire war, downing 40 Japanese planes.
On June 6, 1944 — the date of the D-Day invasion — Johnson was flown back to the United States for a new mission: selling war bonds, exhorting factory workers to greater feats of production and bucking up home front morale in the face of heavy air-war casualties.
Gabreski would recall how Johnson had "phenomenal eyesight."
"There were some guys who just seemed to have an uncanny knack for seeing things before anyone else did," Gabreski wrote in his memoir "Gabby" (Orion, 1991). "His eyes were very keenly tuned to the sky. If he looked into a certain area, and enemy aircraft were there, he saw them ahead of the rest of us."
Robert Samuel Johnson, who was born in Lawton, Okla., became fascinated by planes us an 8-year-old the day he perched on his father's shoulders at Post Field near Lawton and watched three World War I fighters perform stunts. "Then and there I changed my goal from cowboy or railroad engineer to Army aviator."
He started flying at age 13, got his first license the day before he turned 16, and after attending junior college at what is now Cameron University in Lawton, entered an Army aviation school on Nov. 11, 1941.
He scored his first "kill" on June 13, 1943, when he broke from formation to go after a Focke-Wulf fighter, something that was decidedly against the book then. That foray brought a bawling out from his superiors, and Johnson would recall that he "had a reputation as a sort of wild man."
"Other pilots would say, 'Don't fly with Johnson, he’ll get you killed,'" he recalled in an interview with Military History magazine in 1996.
But he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the Silver Star and the Distinguished Flying Cross with the 56th Fighter Group, the renowned Zemke's Wolfpack. Named for its commander, Col. Hubert Zemke, the Wolfpack boasted five of the top 10 American air aces in Europe.
Johnson was never shot down, but had a harrowing experience on June 26, 1943, when the pilot of a Focke-Wulf 190 fighter fired 21 cannon shells into the fuselage of his Thunderbolt during a mission over France. Burned and momentarily blinded by splashing hydraulic fuel and slightly wounded in the right leg and his nose, he tried to bail out but could not open his shattered canopy.
He headed back to England, but another Focke-Wulf riddled his plane with small-arms fire over the English Channel. That pilot finally ran out of ammunition, pulled alongside, wiggled his wings in tribute and peeled off as the crippled Thunderbolt continued to England.
When he returned to the United States in June 1944, Johnson was reunited with his wife, Barbara, and they were greeted by Roosevelt at the White House. Later that day, he received a standing ovation from members of the U.S. Senate when he appeared with his wife in the visitors’ gallery, and the couple had tea with Eleanor Roosevelt at the White House afterward.
The next day, he received the applause of thousands of aircraft workers when he visited the plant of Republic Aviation, which built the Thunderbolt, in Farmingdale, N.Y.
After the war, Johnson was a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force reserves and recounted his combat experiences in "Thunderbolt!" (Rinehart, 1958). He was an executive with Republic Aviation for 18 years, and then worked in the insurance industry.
Remembering his fighter-pilot days, Johnson once observed: "I’m a fatalist, a strong believer that when your time is up, you're gone, out of here. Why worry about that?" But he added: "I was always scared — that was what made me move quick."

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