Joseph Inkerman Johnson was born in 1914 in Hulcote, Northamptonshire. He joined the RAF in June 1935 as an Aircrafthand (Carpenter). He was later remustered as an Airman-in training Pilot and won his wings on 11 August 1939 — three weeks before Britain declared war on Germany.

In May 1940 Sgt. Johnson was posted to 222 Squadron

No. 222 Squadron RAF

-In World War I:The Squadron was formally formed at Thasos on 1 April 1918 from A squadron of the former No. 2 Wing, RNAS when the Royal Air Force was formed. Later, 6 April 1918 former Z Squadron of No. 2 Wing, RNAS was added to the strength. Renumbered No. 62 Wing and consisting of Nos...

. In June he claimed the 'probable' destruction of a He 111 over Dunkirk. By August 1940 he had flown 25 missions. The squadron was posted to RAF Hornchurch

RAF Hornchurch

RAF Hornchurch was an airfield in the south of Hornchurch in what is now the London Borough of Havering. Known as Sutton's Farm during the First World War, it occupied of the farm of the same name and was situated east north-east of Charing Cross...

 on 29 August 1940.

The following day no. 222 were scrambled several times during the day , and at 16:00 hours to intercept a large formation of bombers in the direction of the Thames Estuary and were attacked by the escorting fighters. Flying a Spitfire Mk 1

Supermarine Spitfire

The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War. The Spitfire continued to be used as a front line fighter and in secondary roles into the 1950s...

, R6628 Johnson was shot down at 18:02 by a Messerschmitt Bf109 and crashed near Bishopsbourne

Bishopsbourne

Bishopsbourne is a small village in Kent, England. It lies in the Nailbourne valley some from Canterbury and about from Dover. It has a public house, The Mermaid, built in 1861, and a church, St Mary's, with 14th-century wall paintings. Author Joseph Conrad lived here and his house, "Oswalds",...

, south of Canterbury

Canterbury

Canterbury is a historic English cathedral city, which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour....

 in Kent. It is believed that Johnson died before the crash.

Johnson is buried in Towcester

Towcester

Towcester , the Roman town of Lactodorum, is a small town in south Northamptonshire, England.-Etymology:Towcester comes from the Old English Tófe-ceaster. Tófe refers to the River Tove; Bosworth and Toller compare it to the "Scandinavian proper names" Tófi and Tófa...

 Cemetery in Northamptonshire

Northamptonshire

Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...

. His grave is Row G, Grave 2 and it gives his service number — 520406. His name is included on the Battle of Britain Memorial at Capel-le-Ferne

Battle of Britain Memorial, Capel-le-Ferne

The Battle of Britain Memorial is a monument to aircrew who flew in the Battle of Britain. It is sited on the White Cliffs at Capel-le-Ferne, near Folkestone, on the coast of Kent. It was initiated by the Battle of Britain Memorial Trust, and opened by the Queen Mother on July 9 1993...

.