Davenport Johnson (28 March 1890 – 21 October 1963) was a

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

major general. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he commanded the

Eleventh Air Force The Eleventh Air Force (11 AF) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force Pacific Air Forces (PACAF). It is headquartered at Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson, Alaska.This unit is not related to the Eleventh Air Force headquart ...

in Alaska from November 1943 to November 1945.

Early life and education

Born in

Tyler, Texas Tyler, officially the City of Tyler, is a city in and the county seat of Smith County, Texas, United States. As of 2020, the population is 105,995. Tyler was the List of municipalities in Texas, 38th most populous city in Texas (as well as the m ...

, Johnson graduated from the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

in June 1912. He later graduated from the

Command and General Staff School The United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC or, obsolete, USACGSC) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, is a graduate school for United States Army and sister service officers, interagency representatives, and international military ...

in June 1926 and the

United States Army War College The United States Army War College (USAWC) is a U.S. Army staff college in Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, with a Carlisle postal address, on the 500-acre (2 km2) campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks. It provides graduate-level instru ...

in June 1929.

Military career

Johnson was commissioned as an infantry officer and served with the 19th Infantry Regiment in Oklahoma, Texas and Mexico. In February 1916, he was sent to the Aviation Section,

Signal Corps A signal corps is a military branch, responsible for military communications (''signals''). Many countries maintain a signal corps, which is typically subordinate to a country's army. Military communication usually consists of radio, telephone, ...

School in San Diego, California. After training, he served with the

1st Aero Squadron First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

in New Mexico and Mexico. In February 1917, he was sent to France as an observer and student.

World War I

Johnson was given command of the

95th Aero Squadron The 95th Aero Squadron was an Air Service, United States Army unit that fought on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front during World War I. It was the first American pursuit (fighter) squadron to fly in combat on the Western Front, begi ...

from March to June 1918. He then helped organize the 2nd Pursuit Group and participated in the

St. Mihiel offensive The Battle of Saint-Mihiel was a major World War I battle fought from 12 to 15 September 1918, involving the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) and 110,000 French troops under the command of General John J. Pershing of the United States agains ...

. He accepted a temporary promotion to lieutenant colonel on 24 September 1918 and participated in the

Meuse–Argonne offensive The Meuse–Argonne offensive (also known as the Meuse River–Argonne Forest offensive, the Battles of the Meuse–Argonne, and the Meuse–Argonne campaign) was a major part of the final Allies of World War I, Allied Offensive (military), offe ...

. Johnson was awarded the

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

and the

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the president to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

for his

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

service.

Between wars

Johnson assumed command of the 2nd Pursuit Group in March 1919. Returning to the United States, he assumed command of the

1st Pursuit Group First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

in June 1919 at

Selfridge Field Selfridge Air National Guard Base or Selfridge ANGB is an Air National Guard installation located in Harrison Township, Michigan, near Mount Clemens. Selfridge Field was one of thirty-two Air Service training camps established after the Un ...

in Michigan. In August 1919, Johnson assumed command of the 1st Wing and

Kelly Field Kelly Field (formerly Kelly Air Force Base) is a Joint-use airport, Joint-Use facility located in San Antonio, Texas. It was originally named after George E. M. Kelly, the first member of the U.S. military killed in the crash of an airplane he ...

in Texas. In February 1920, he reverted to his permanent rank of captain. On 1 July 1920, he was formally transferred to the

Army Air Service The United States Army Air Service (USAAS)Craven and Cate Vol. 1, p. 9 (also known as the ''"Air Service"'', ''"U.S. Air Service"'' and before its legislative establishment in 1920, the ''"Air Service, United States Army"'') was the aerial warf ...

and promoted to major. From August 1922 to July 1923, Johnson was given command of the

1st Observation Squadron The 1st Reconnaissance Squadron is a United States Air Force squadron, assigned to the 9th Operations Group, Beale Air Force Base, California. The 1st Reconnaissance Squadron is the United States military's oldest flying unit, first establish ...

Mitchel Field Mitchell may refer to: People and fictional characters *Mitchell (surname), including lists of both people and fictional characters *Mitchell (given name), lists of people and fictional characters Places Australia * Mitchell, Australian Ca ...

on Long Island. In February 1930, Johnson assumed command of the

3rd Attack Group Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', i.e., the third in a series of fractional parts in a sexagesimal number system Places * 3rd Street (dis ...

and

Fort Crockett Fort Crockett is a government reservation on Galveston Island overlooking the Gulf of Mexico originally built as a defense installation to protect the city and harbor of Galveston and to secure the entrance to Galveston Bay, thus protecting the c ...

at Galveston, Texas. He was relieved of command in June 1932 and took a Military Intelligence assignment in Washington, D.C. Johnson was promoted to lieutenant colonel on 1 August 1935. Johnson received a temporary promotion to colonel on 26 August 1936 and assumed command of the 7th Bombardment Group at Hamilton Field in California. From November 1936 to February 1938, he was post commander at Hamilton Field. From March 1938 to October 1940, Johnson was post commander at

Chanute Field Chanute may refer to: *Chanute, Kansas, United States **Chanute High School *Octave Chanute Octave Chanute (February 18, 1832 – November 23, 1910) was a French-American civil engineer and aviation pioneer. He advised and publicized many aviat ...

in Illinois. Johnson received a temporary promotion to brigadier general on 2 October 1940 and was assigned as an assistant to the chief of the Air Corps in Washington, D.C. In July 1941, he became an assistant to the commanding general of the Caribbean Air Forces in Panama. Johnson received a temporary promotion to major general on 5 August 1941 and then assumed command of the Caribbean Air Forces in September 1941. His permanent rank was later increased to colonel on 1 February 1942.

World War II

After United States entry into the war, the Caribbean Air Forces were redesignated as the Sixth Air Force. In February 1943, Johnson assumed command of the

Second Air Force The Second Air Force (2 AF; ''2d Air Force'' in 1942) is a USAF numbered air force responsible for conducting basic military and technical training for Air Force enlisted members and non-flying officers. In World War II the CONUS unit defended ...

Colorado Springs, Colorado Colorado Springs is the most populous city in El Paso County, Colorado, United States, and its county seat. The city had a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, a 15.02% increase since 2010 United States Census, 2 ...

training bomber crews for overseas deployment. In November 1943, he assumed command of the

in Alaska. He was awarded the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievemen ...

, the Distinguished Flying Cross and the

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establi ...

for his World War II service. Johnson retired from active duty in the Army Air Forces on November 30, 1945. He was transferred to the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

retired list in 1947.

Later life

Johnson and his wife Manon (Craig) Johnson (18 December 1891 – 8 June 1964) lived in Colorado Springs, Colorado after his retirement. He died in

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

in 1963. Johnson and his wife are buried at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Davenport 1890 births 1963 deaths People from Tyler, Texas United States Military Academy alumni Aviators from Texas United States Army personnel of World War I Recipients of the Silver Star United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni United States Army War College alumni United States Army Air Forces generals of World War II United States Army Air Forces generals Recipients of the Air Medal Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Air Force generals People from Colorado Springs, Colorado Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Military personnel from Texas