Johnston, Robert N.

“After graduation from Laredo, I went to Luke for combat crew training in the F-84. This was really a blast, the reasons I could readily see for all the hard work I had put in the last year. The instructors really treated us like fighter pilots. While at Luke, the truce was declared in Korea so my assignment there was canceled and there was a choice of SAC fighters or USAFE. A lot wanted to stay in the US but the instructors prevailed and the bachelors went to USAFE and for the most part, married guys went to SAC, I believe Bergstrom and Turner.

At Camp Kilmer, I received orders to the 86th FTR Bomber Wing at Landstuhl AB, Germany. No one told us that USAFE did not have F-84’s, that the F-86’s were assigned. I arrived in Landstuhl with a deluge of F-86 pilots from Nellis. Needless to say, the 86th FBW was inundated with 2/Lt’s. The wing had not had a 2/Lt assigned in 3 years.

I arrived in September and I think it was December before I was checked out in the F-86. Of course this was a wonderful experience to fly the finest fighters in the world. After about 18 months, the F-86D showed up and I couldn’t avoid it. I flew the F-86D for about a year and became an IP in the T-33 for the base instrument school. Lots of cross-countries, plenty of flying tim without the fighter/interceptor mission. About this time, Robin Olds showed up. He became an excellent fighter pilot motivator. He said he would transfer all of us who stayed in the AF to the 527 FBS (which was still flying F-86’s) and were going to transition to F-100’s and move to Hahn AB simultaneously.

In September, 1956, I was assigned to the 413th Fighter Day Group at George-what an experience, to be an F-100C pilot in those days, especially the Fighter Day mission. Air-to-air hassles twice a day, over the Mojave desert against anyone you could find to bounce, LA on the weekends and skiing at Mammoth Mountain in the winter. In 1958, we transitioned to the tactical fighter mission and learned a lot about nuclear bombs and 24 hour, 7 days a week alert. There were a lot of TDY’s-Moron, Aviano, Incerlik, Nellis Weapons School, Formosa, to name a few-but I loved it all.

In 1962, I was assigned to the F-105 and another USAFE tour to Bitburg AB. Plenty of fun here practicing to be a nuke bomber. Everyday we flew radar low-levels across Germany and France. We went to Wheelus AB, Libya every 6 months for gunnery training. That was really pretty good as we still shot the dart and fired AIM 9’s and Bullpups, plus qualifying in all conventional and nuclear delivery events.

After 4 years, I had to leave and was fortunate to be assigned to the F-105 section of the USAF Fighter Weapons School. This would not last long as the F-105 loss rate in SEA required the use of these aircraft over there. I was assigned to Korat AB, Thailand in November ’66 as an F-105 Wild Weasel Ops officer. This was a very good tour, I’m so happy I was able to fly a combat tour as a fighter pilot. I completed 100 missions over North Vietnam in July 1967 and was assigned to the Fighter Weapons Wing as Chief of the Wild Weasel test and evaluation section. This was some of the best flying because of the tests in support of SEA. Almost every flight was live ordinance, live missiles or air combat training with dis-similar aircraft. I was able to pull a tour as weapons center liaison officer at 7th AF so I felw a few more combat training missions at Korat and Tahkli.

In 1969, I volunteered to go to Eglin as a test director for Combat Thunder. This was a large test involving the use of Loran Navigation system to provide information to strike aircraft so that targets could be struck at night and during weather conditions. RF4C aircraft provided photos of targets within formation to F-105 strike aircraft. At the end of one year and a voluminous test report, I was assigned to the 23rd TFW at McConnell AFT, Kansas. Most of the next year was spent bedding down the F-105’s as they went to the AFRES. I was assigned as group advisor to the F-105 unit that was formed at Carswell AFB, Texas. I thoroughly enjoyed my final three years of active duty flying with the Air Force Reserves. Upon retirement, I accepted a Civil Service position in Operations until retirement in 1994.”