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Lockheed's Aviation Genius
Clarence Leonard “Kelly”
Johnson was a pathbreaking aeronautical engineer who worked for Lockheed
Aircraft for over four decades. Born in Ishpeming, Michigan, on 27 February
1910, he graduated from the University of Michigan with an M.S. in aeronautical
engineering in 1933 and joined Lockheed that same year.
Johnson was creative, dynamic,
ambitious, and unafraid to question others’ expertise and ideas. Soon after
arriving at Lockheed, he told his employers that the design of a new aircraft
they were working on was flawed and would make the plane dangerously unstable.
Instead of firing him, Lockheed asked him to work on the problem. He developed
the double vertical tail configuration that became one of the trademark
features of the company’s aircraft, including the A-12.
From there, Johnson rose quickly
and became Lockheed’s chief research engineer in 1938. In 1952 he was appointed
chief engineer of the firm’s Burbank, California, plant and then vice president
of research and development in 1956, and vice president for advanced
development projects in 1958. Johnson became a member of Lockheed’s Board of
Directors in 1964 and senior vice president of the corporation in 1969. He
retired in 1975, but he served on as a consultant at the Skunk Works until
1980. He died at the age of 80 on 21 December 1990.
“Johnson was creative, dynamic, ambitious,
and unafraid to question others’ expertise and ideas”
Johnson’s contributions to
advanced aircraft design were extraordinary. He designed or contributed
significantly to the development of 40 well-known and important military and civilian aircraft. In addition to the U-2, the A-12, and the SR-71, they
included the P-38 Lightning, the Constellation, the PV-2 Neptune, the F-80 Shooting
Star, the F-94 Starfire, the F-104 Starfighter, the B-37 Ventura, the C-130
Hercules, the C-140 Jetstar, and the AH-56 Cheyenne attack helicopter. His
accomplishments were founded on a hard-charging but informal management style
and an openness to experimentation that brought out the best in his coworkers.
Among his numerous awards and honors from industry, professional societies, and
the Air Force, are two Collier Trophies (1959 and 1964), the National Medal of
Science (1966), the nation’s highest civilian award, the Presidential Medal of
Freedom (1967), the CIA Distinguished Intelligence Medal (1975), and the
National Security Medal (1983). He was elected to the Aviation Hall of Fame in
1974.
Sketches from Kelly Johnson's notebook:
Historical Document
Posted: Oct 01, 2007 07:03 AM
Last Updated: Jun 27, 2008 09:53 AM
Last Reviewed: Oct 01, 2007 07:03 AM