Robert Samuel Johnson
MilitaryIWM, Roger Freeman Collection
Robert S Johnson enlisted in 1941 and shortly selected for flying training as a bomber pilot, he was commissioned in July 1942. In January 1943, he was assigned to the 56th Fighter Group and travelled with them to England, he was unqualified to fly the P-47 Thunderbolt but flew his first combat mission in April 1943. Nevertheless, Johnson claimed 27 aerial victories, becoming the first pilot to surpass First World War Ace Eddie Rickenbacker's record of 26 claims in May 1944. He flew 91 missions with the 56th Fighter Group. He completed his tour of Duty in 1944 and joined Republic Aviation as an engineering executive.
Plane 'All Hell. '
DSC/ DFC w/ 8 Oak Leaf Cluster/ SS/ PH/ AM w/ 4 Oak Leaf Cluster
Air to Ground 28; Air 28
Connections
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Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Fighter
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Fighter
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Fighter
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: P-47 Thunderbolt
- Nicknames: Half Pint
- Unit: 36th Fighter Group 56th Fighter Group 61st Fighter Squadron
- Aircraft Type: P-47 Thunderbolt
- Nicknames: Penrod and Sam
- Unit: 56th Fighter Group 62nd Fighter Squadron
- Aircraft Type: P-47 Thunderbolt
- Nicknames: Double Lucky, All Hell
- Unit: 56th Fighter Group 61st Fighter Squadron
- Aircraft Type: P-47 Thunderbolt
- Nicknames: Lucky
- Unit: 56th Fighter Group 61st Fighter Squadron
Places
- Site type: Airfield
- Site type: Airfield
- Known as: Holton
- Site type: Airfield
- Site type: Airfield
- Known as: Kingscliffe, Apethorpe
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Born |
Lawton, Oklahoma | 21 February 1920 | |
Died |
Tulsa, OK, USA | 27 December 1998 |
Revisions
Freeman, The Mighty Eighth, p. 273
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_S._Johnson
Ted Damick, VIII Fighter Command pilots list
American Aces in Great Fighter Battles of World War II / Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia