Robert S. Johnson
| Robert Samuel Johnson | |
|---|---|
Robert S. Johnson in his P-47 Thunderbolt April 13, 1944
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| Born |
February 21, 1920 Lawton, Oklahoma |
| Died | December 27, 1998 (aged 78) Tulsa, Oklahoma |
| Buried at | River Hills Community Church, Lake Wylie, South Carolina |
| Allegiance |
 United States of America
|
| Service/branch | United States Army Air Forces |
| Years of service | 1941–1946 |
| Rank | Lieutenant colonel |
| Unit | 61st Fighter Squadron, 56th Fighter Group |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Awards | |
Lieutenant Colonel Robert Samuel Johnson (February 21, 1920 – December 27, 1998) was a USAAF fighter pilot during World War II. He is credited with scoring 28 victories during the conflict flying a Republic P-47 Thunderbolt.
Robert S. Johnson was the first USAAF fighter pilot in the European theater to surpass Eddie Rickenbacker's World War I score of 26 victories. He finished his combat tour with 28 kills, was later credited by the Eighth Air Force claims board with a 28th victory when a "probable" was reassessed as a "destroyed", then reduced back to 27 when a post-war review discovered that the Eighth Air Force had inadvertently switched credits for a kill he made with a double kill made by a fellow 56th Fighter Group pilot, Ralph A. Johnson, on November 26, 1943, a day when Robert Johnson aborted the mission after takeoff. (Their Army serial numbers were also nearly identical, O-662216 and O-662217.)
Note on sources: Johnson's autobiographical memoir, Thunderbolt!, provided all information regarding Johnson's childhood and cadet training.
Johnson was born in Lawton, Oklahoma, the son of an automobile mechanic, in February 1920. In his war memoir, Thunderbolt!, he states that he first developed an interest in military aviation in the summer of 1928, when his father took him to see a U.S. Army Air Corps barnstorming team, "The Three Musketeers", appearing at Ft. Sill's Post Field. Four years later, Johnson took his first flight, a 15-minute night excursion over Lawton in a Ford Tri-motor.
Johnson attended Lawton public schools, was a Boy Scout, and excelled in athletics. For acquiring the skills and aggressiveness he later employed as a fighter pilot, Johnson credited an interest in shooting and hunting small game with a .22 rifle, boxing competitively to learn about controlling fear, and playing high school and junior college football as a blocking guard.
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