THE CHIN
STARTING TODAY — THE
MAIL, ` SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 10, ́ ́1986.
INSIDE STORY OF MEN WHO LIVED WITH ·· DANGER
OUT OUT OF
THE SUN
tion.
This is the story of a man whose dash and daring have found that it was not a simple In a fortnight 010 Squadron nutter to Join either of these had been broken to pieces by thrilled and inspired his countrymen. A man who has been organisations, And it seemed the enemy fighters. And there that learning to Ay was not was little compensaling sri f hailed as the greatest air fighter of them all. A man who shot necessarily the right prepara- to offset the tale of heavy loss The unit I joined at the onset down more enemy planes (38) than any other Allied fighter
1 remember how, on
one of my fighting career was pilot of the Second World War.
occasion,
Was Interviewed quadron in
defeat.
And to my by an officer who turned out dismay the squadron. Instead of The China Mail is proud to introduce today the Johnnie to be very keen fox-hunting going back to the battle.
type. He asked me the usuvi posted to Kirton-in-Lindsey, a Johnson Story told by Johnnie Johnson.
questions school, profession, bleak Lincolnshire airfeld 10
indles south of Scunthorpe, Any
The House of
PETER MCGOVERN
#
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Nov. 12th
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SIX
JIA MANILA
PAL POL
CONNECTING INDONESIA, QUAM, "AUSTRALIA,
U.S.A
KUROPE
T
Fa:1
my tion
at that moment home was at Melton Mowbray.
was low, "That's a jolly good thing," he said, "I suppose you hunt, In that case,"
WUN
10 post- Morale
sport, whether or not 1 had HE Messerschmitt
flying experience. Naturally, 1 WILK dead ahead, fald
great stres on the fact Many members Of 810 almost filling the that I had started dying at my almost courage. Many had died Squadron had fought with the whudscreen.
own expense, My
But he did not bravely. The squadron was lo mouth was dry and there flagging enthusiasm revived
appear to
10 be impressed.
His rise again to glorious da. But were butterflies in my little when i told him that my there was no doubt i
The sweat stomach. down my face and neck and my shirt was clammy under the bulging "Mae West."
This is H, I thought.
Nail him, und get out quick.
Gripping the stick with both hands Squeezed the Aring button. The bullets from my
machine-guns
slammet home behind the cockpit.
Closing range. I sprayed the nony nighter with my Ore. German pilot licked over in a half-roll and jettisoned his
I
2110
The C.0 was silent when we drove round the perimeter Track to
Vakhte
I headquarters
about Kosticthing wwe2k 11 but he would not
muttered
Д wondering
about.
drawn.
WAL
The tension broke, and the wing-commander stretched his Lall frame and grinned. Even Billy Burton forgot his Cronwell training and produced Д battered pipe,
Well, Johnale, I'll get the blower straight away and Ax it up.
It will be some time before you fly again.
be
wam him
Billy?"
Do
On
The book, "Wing Leader," by Group Caplain Johman, from which this series t adapted, will be published by Chalto & Windus (155).
and the authorities were on the look-out to ensure you at once. You'd better come That the damage did not aprend, with
He will the [htt too."* It was against this background IN AT LAST that I suffered
terrible axioty. My right shoulder be- EXPLAINED acthelly, that all gan to give me increasing pain my apare cash was devoted to particularly when I was flying. fying rather than hunting. At did not know then that
the interview this point
war Rugby injury incurred in 1930 speedily ended. My services a
what all the Bul
choice language. had been improperly set, a pilot with an Auxiliary Ali I did know that
you panic was about. Half a dozen In Was Force squadron were not re- danger of having to report We
For a second my future hung people started to explain. Weye shown into the quired at the shooting
"So the baskets are coming war nyself unit for flying just after station
in the balance, either to rejoin Bloody good show! Think of all commander'a 200117 had begun.
joining a squadron where every
Stephen Hardy shifted his six-fighter pool and posted to the dat
the squadron or to be sent to a those juicy torgels on those nico Paradoxically, when I finally pilot was under constant and-a-half-foot frame in bis
beaches. I remembered
What shooting!” my C.O.'% abandoned irt despair
scrutiny.
first vacancy. my
chalr and acknowledged my
And he made rude sound precise instructions about enemy efforts to join fying unit, I found that I
"I think we can make some with his lipe which was meant had to be saluto with a faint nod. He did pilota who baled out: "I' was readily accepted as a careful when
thig of swing my
not invite me to stand at east, Buon
him, sir," answered to resemble П ripple court martial any member of recruit In
the mounted parachute over nity shoulder
"He's not shaping too machine-gun fire. and even Burton stood rigidly at badly." this squadron who fires at a Leicestershire Yeomanry. I had and when lightened my
all relaxed and roared with IN HOSPITAL We met was extraordinary. Laughter. The atmosphere of AT the R.A.F. hospital at uncertain anxiety was immedi
ately dispelled. Officers Ruucoby in Micoln Hire my ale shoulder was fixed up bya, about their 'värious tasks and
"The
cockpit canopy.
I
I
him
attention a pace behind, it was
sprayed with my fire... it
was my first 'kill'
WUR
parachute"-but this chap still inside the cockpit, and I hammered him once more.
A shapeless from
Veering
the
fell
bundle Messerschmitt.
away I watched
tumble until I saw a parachute
flere open.
Trailing a
of
dark plume smoke the broken Messerschmitt plummeted carthwards steepening inverted dive.
my
by JOHNNIE JOHNSON
(Group Captain J. E. Johnson, D.S.O.
2 bars, D.F.C. and bar)
a formal interview and
came straight to the point:-
of
went
brilliant young surgeon serving the complicated machinery of for the duration of the war. Ab the airfield begun to function the end of the year I was pro smoothly again nounced fit for full flying The incident left me with a duties and made preparations to profound impression. I had wit
of leadership nessed qualities rejoin the squadron,
During these restles, and frus displayed in a moment of ten- trating weeks of hospital and
alon. convale ence I thought often of Came
one P dicular fighter pliot
whom
Like everyone else who into contact with him.
I immediately developed a feel- for this
had met briefly between ng of hero-worship my posting from the training remarkable man. unit and my ignominious (as it "CHARLIE' BOY seemed to me) retirement from
Blying.
That
man WFLA already 4 legond and a hero. He had lost both his legs in a terrible smash the in 1931. Yet he had badgered
DES
ESPITE the fact that he lost he was still very keen on acro- his legs when "stunting," batics and contended that
ΠΟ
ntmosphere was cool, Hardy his way back into a front line was master of his Spitfire flying job when the war started "Well, Johnson, the docs tell and was already one of me that you are suffering from R.A.F.'s leading fighter acer some affilction to your right His name, of shoulder," He glanced through Douglas Bader, the
course, wns
window at a couple pf I had mot Bader a few days Spitfires which were climbing afler reporting to 816 Squadron, into the clean September sky. The circumstances of that meet-
sary
until he could control it in all the attitudes. Bader's frequent dis- plays over the airfield were the delight of the ground crews.
His favourite acrobatic man- oeuvro was to gain the seces- height over the airfield, aileron turn
into a steep dive and. just above our heads, reof harness straps. in
I began, sur- "So I am grounding you. All ing provide a good Illustration the Spitfire into a series of up- reptitiously to pack the shoulder our pilots must be 100 percent of the man's extraordinary per ward rolls followed by a roll with cotton wool. Then I found fit.
sonality,
off the that
top of the loop. The the fingere of my right
One Saturday evening we had display was faultless whenever hand seemed cold and lifeless.
been released from operations he carried out two Whenever
upward could, on training
and were having a few beers in Charlies [rollal, 66 AS I see it, there are two the Bell at Norwich. Suddenly a tried to introduce flights,
held
the
control column with my left hand. But Apparently
A alternatives open to you. posse of Service police stalked in into the drili. The evolution was
your shoulder Was impossible
and announced that all RAF. How dogfight
und close ormation training when
autis didn't trouble you during your personnel were to report back to now seldom achieved with its
you flew light their airfields at once.
former polish and Bader
often exerelses. I began trying. to aircraft. So I could have_you
atailed his Spitare and spun land my Spitfire left handed--
Training Com-
Ignominiously defore the sembly. you could instruct
I had done it. i had scored
first kill. Feeling
_deep_exultation, drove my Spitfire round In tall-clearing turn. No other
plane was in sight.
Time to get out,
learned to ride at an early age and was pleased to ind that my troop commnder did not think it necessary that I should be an expert air pilot in order to qualify as a cavalryman.
Early In 1930
luck turned. A letter from Abr Ministry told me that the R.A.F.VR. was being expanded
mo
Nose down, throttle open, ! sped home across the Channel and that, there was a place for and landed to refuel nt me.
I transferred immediately Hawkinge, the little grass air. and began my training as feld behind the Dover balloon
sergeant-pdiot. barrage,
JUNE 26, 1941
of my
of
this
I
1.
a dangerous procedure,
Eventually approached
in
SUSPICION
transferred
mand, where
sick quarters, where he carried sude some irritation
out
FLAP,
but he soon a third roll
somewhat
and
fight-Houlerunt
occur to me to want or expect losing, Satties over the retreating during iltilo reaction beyond a *** HOT unknown malady gopular of which was that the given his usual performance and
THE
to score another 37 confirmed allied armies in France. victories, Sul less to end up the war
as top-scoring allied fighter pilot.
The date was June 20, 1941, I was 25 years old. 1 was
Spitfires roared off and tore the massive Luftwaffe forma- tions, over Dunkirk.
And the
he
a or. Tiger Moths."
RACK al. Coltishall the scene
Then there was posted to the D I had only a few hours
young Volunteer Reserve doctor Hardy paused and looked
in the officers' ' mess could squadron my log book when war began him something of my trouble.
In the officers' mess and told
pedantic, He only be described as confused. out of the window again. And, course, in the months
cased the neckband of his shirt the duration, darfed about in all who, although without combat
Elderly officers, mobilised for moustachioed T was a moment of triumph, It
He insisted on taking me to with which followed 1 Imagined,
and I seemed at the time to be the impatiently, that I was going to
a searching
examination, suddenly knew why the Incident directions. We tried to get some experience, was an aerobatic fulfilment
We heard pilot of gress ability, whole miss it all. The Hurricane pliots
distar ul to him. Ho idea of the "form." was so Gerce, Gallant, Ho jabbed my
various lively accounts, the most Bagers and suspected tha. I was suffering amblilon. It certainly did not fought their
One warm day · Bader
tud forearm with a needle, pro- from a
German Invasion had begun. was now lounging in his under- tack of 我图 known officially few faint smears of blood. into
I left the ante-room to make shirt, cooling We pilots had
off and chatting moral Abre TOO LATE another name for. No doubt a telephone call, Hurrying along to Billy Burton,
the
corridor. I almost collided "Y'know, Billy,
the
Spit's
it's not was using my with thought I
a squadron leader, who built to do more than two ANOTHER more senior doctor shoulder as an excuse to escape stumped towards me, with an upward Charlies before the roll
camo is. And though I had operations,
awkward gait.
off the
top. It's just not got the wished to avold a
format "O" you can take your
"I say, old boy, what's all the speed. I've pulled it of once or medical examination. It
but she's very uncom too late. They wero
doce think that If your and putting a match to his pipe, fortable." committal, but I was in their,
shoulder was opened up and a good reset there would be
1. optied. "But there's a interrupted by the shattering Next morning I was about to chance of getting it forumour the Germans are com- roar of a Spititre that retracted to report fly when my C.O., Squadron and for all, The choice operational Leader Billy Burton, sirode into yours."
The squadron leader stalked heads. et was our new, flight- the dispersal hul
I did not hesitate.
into the nolay ante-room. He lleutenant Bader looked (dise", There you are Johnson. The "When can I go into hospital took in the scene and then de, pleased and grunted: tation commander wants to ce air?).
manded in a loud voice, and in
learning my trado
air battles began to rage over the Channel ports and South- East England.
ordered
It had all
all started three and Would my training last for half years before.
ever while others did all the 37io year 1938 had found me lighting at the end of August as a civil engineer working at
At last, Loughton, on the edge of Epping 1940, my posting came through. Forest. In my spare time I took I was flying lessons, for I desperately Immediately wanted to become a "week-end duties with 010 (Auxiliary Air pilot" in the Volunteer Reserve Force) Squadron at Coltishall, or Auxiliary Air Force. But I in Norfolk.
MANDRAKE THE MAGICIAN
I'M NOT CONVINCED THAT- YOU TWO ARE ONLY PRE
HARMLESS EXPLORERS
· FROM MARS**
I MUST CALE
"THE POLICE A PLEASE
[NO].
***
WE MUST REMAIN SECRET. THAT'S WHY WE'VE TRIED TO LOOK LIKE A NORMAL EARTH FAMILY I "PEOPLE KNEW WE WERE FROM BROD MARS 200 /*
clutches.
IT WOULD CAUSE TOO MUCH EXCITEMENT. WE'D NOT 88 PERMITTED TO SPACE TRAVEL ANY MORE.
wan
"non-ence on the operating table, flap about?" he said, legs apart twice,
WE MUST KNOW MORE ABOUT YOU!
By Lee Faik and Phil Davis
MEANWHILE,
JAX THE
RO
PAIRS FINISHED,
HEAD BACK
"I don't really know for sure, Any further
ber conversation wa
There's no magic about CADBURY'S Ở HỒNG KONG
FAVOURITE CHOCOLATES
we
its wheels 'n few feet shove our
"I say! (#lily!': Who's that chapt! Can't have, that sort or thing. Bad Aying discipline."
We turned away to hide our grina, MNR PARE
ONE, TWO
ALLY now watched the
nowcomer who stall-turned, and streaked down towards our little group: Overhead be pulled the Spitfire into weep climb and, siralght" es en arrow, began a mories of benuitul la alimki rolls. It was as if tie, had thro the gauntlet at the
counted the CYM