Lieutenant Edward Grahame Johnstone (6 May 1899 – 1946) was a British World War I

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

credited with 17 aerial victories.

Biography

He was born in

Tooting Tooting is a district in South London, forming part of the London Borough of Wandsworth and partly in the London Borough of Merton. It is located south south-west of Charing Cross. History Tooting has been settled since pre- Saxon times ...

, London, England, the son of Edward Henderson Johnstone and Stella Johnstone (née Fraser).

First World War

Johnstone joined the

Royal Naval Air Service The Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) was the air arm of the Royal Navy, under the direction of the Admiralty's Air Department, and existed formally from 1 July 1914 to 1 April 1918, when it was merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps t ...

on his 18th birthday, 6 May 1917. After training with No. 12 Naval Squadron as a temporary probationary flight officer, he was commissioned as a temporary flight sub-lieutenant on 19 August 1917. He was assigned to fly

Sopwith Camel The Sopwith Camel is a British First World War single-seat biplane fighter aircraft that was introduced on the Western Front in 1917. It was developed by the Sopwith Aviation Company as a successor to the Sopwith Pup and became one of the b ...

s in No. 8 Naval Squadron (which later became No. 208 Squadron RAF). He scored his first triumph on 6 December 1917, followed by 16 more over the next eight months. His final tally was four enemy aircraft destroyed, three of which were shared with other British pilots, and thirteen driven down out of control, eight of which were shared, most frequently with William Jordon and Pruett Dennett. Johnstone was transferred to the unemployed list of the RAF on 11 April 1919.

Inter-war life and family

During the 1920s Johnstone travelled throughout Asia, while working for

Johnnie Walker Johnnie Walker is a brand of Scotch whisky now owned by Diageo that originated in the Scottish burgh of Kilmarnock in East Ayrshire. The brand was first established by grocer John Walker. It is the most widely distributed brand of blended ...

. In 1927 he married the artist and designer Doris Clare Zinkeisen (1898–1991) in Marylebone, London. They had twin daughters Janet and Anne in 1928, and a son, Murray.

Second World War

During the Second World War Johnstone returned to the Royal Navy, serving as a lieutenant in the

Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a cit ...

from December 1939. By August 1943 he had been appointed an acting-commander, and by July 1945 was a temporary acting captain, posted to HMS ''Vulture'', the Royal Naval Air Station at

St. Merryn St Merryn ( kw, S. Meryn) is a civil parish and village in north Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is about south of the fishing port of Padstow and northeast of the coastal resort of Newquay. The village has a primary school, a veterinar ...

, Cornwall. Johnstone died in 1946.

Awards and citations

;Distinguished Service Cross :Flight Sub-Lieutenant Edward Grahame Johnstone, RNAS. ::"For the pluck and determination shown by him in engaging enemy aircraft. On the 19th January, 1918, he attacked five Albatross scouts, and engaged one, nose on, opening fire at 75 yards range. The enemy aircraft turned on its side and spun. He followed, and engaged again at 30 yards range. The enemy aircraft went down completely out of control. Later in the day, in a general engagement with fourteen Albatross scouts, he followed one down to 8,000 feet, firing all the time. This is confirmed by other pilots of the patrol to have fallen completely out of control. On several other occasions he has destroyed enemy machines or brought them down completely out of control."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnstone, Edward Grahame 1899 births 1946 deaths People from Tooting Royal Naval Air Service aviators Royal Naval Air Service personnel of World War I Royal Air Force personnel of World War I British World War I flying aces Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II