The growing up of 'Johnny' Johnson, top fighter ace

The growing up of 'Johnny' Johnson, top fighter ace

Four photographs of Johnny - as a baby, a nine year old, a teenager and on his wedding day. The article gives brief details about his life.

1944-07-11

One newspaper cutting

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NColeFIG170709-05

[underlined] DAILY EXPRESS TUESDAY JULY 11 1944 [/underlined]

The growing up of 'Johnny' Johnson, top fighter ace

[photograph]
'Johnny' was tough as a baby

FOUR STAGES in the life of Wing-Commander J.E. ("Johnny") Johnson, treble D.S.O., double D.F.C., now Britain's top fighter ace with a score of 35 kills. Here is picture No. 1 from the Johnson family album. It was taken in July 1915. "Johnny" already showed signs of the fight[missing letters]g spirit for, says his mother, "at the age of four months [missing letter]e was a tough baby." The future 400 miles per hour flier c[missing letters]d not even crawl a yard in an hour then. When he brou[missing letters]t his score up to 35 recently, Johnson saved the life of one of his pilots, Flight-Lieutenant Copeland. His squadron took on 12 enemy planes, and when Copeland had his right aileron shot away "Johnny" swooped and, with a burst [missing letters]nt a menacing Messerschmitt 109 cras[missing letters] in flames.

[photograph]
JOHNNY at the age of nine. – On Mablethorpe sands, with his younger brother Ross, piloting a donkey (at the rate of about half a mile in half an hour).

[photograph]
AGED 15 – his speed improves. "Johnny" Johnson was first man home in the five-and-a-half mile cross-country run which he won for the third year in succession for Loughborough (Leicestershire) Grammar School.

[photograph]
HONEYMOON PICTURE from the family album – November 1942. Wing-Commander "Johnny" Johnson and his bride Pauline. They met at a party in Norwich. "It was love at first sight," Mrs Johnson said last night. Johnny is 28 now. He joined the R.A.F. in April 1939, was commissioned the following year and scored his first victories as a fighter pilot in the squadron of Wing-Commander Bader, the leg[missing letters] pilot, now a prisoner of war.