Clarence L. ‘Kelly’ Johnson – Lord of the Skunk Works

Clarence 'Kelly' Johnson

Photo credit:

Lockheed Martin

An avid fan of Tom Swift, Clarence Johnson knew from the age of 12, he wanted to design airplanes. The son of Swedish immigrants, Clarence was born on February 27, 1910 in Ishpeming, a remote Upper Peninsula mining town in Michigan, seven years after the Wright Brothers first successful flight. Ashamed of the family’s poverty during his childhood, Johnson made a personal vow to himself that he would one day return after acquiring a name of distinction.
For one who loved aircraft, Kelly would not see a plane with his own eyes (a World War I Jenny) until after he designed one of his own, which he named the ‘Merlin 1, Battle Plane.’ He named the plane for Merlin, the famed magician of King Arthur’s court.
Typical of the behavior of kids, Johnson dealt with a great deal of ridicule by his classmates because of his name, ‘Clarence’. A number of the boys would shorten it to ‘Clara’. Having tired of the ridicule, one morning while waiting in line to go to class, Johnson tripped one of the boys so hard, the boy broke his leg. Suddenly, Johnson went from being called ‘Clara’ to the new name ‘Kelly,’ from a popular song on the radio, ‘Kelly from the Emerald Isle.’ From that point on, he would be known as ‘Kelly’ Johnson.

Slideshow: Creative talents of Clarence 'Kelly' Johnson

Kelly’s father soon moved his family to Flint, Michigan where he established a construction business. During high school, Kelly worked with his father, and also in the motor testing section of the Buick Motor Car Company. When he graduated from high school, his savings account contained $300. Kelly wanted to use the money to take flying lessons; however the instructor refused to accept it. This decision most likely changed Kelly’s path in life because the instructor told him to use his money instead to go to school. Kelly heeded the wise advice, and as they say – the rest is history.
Graduating from Flint Junior College (Mott Community College), he later received a Bachelor of Science Degree from the University of Michigan in 1932. He paid his way through school with a combination of scholarships and dishwashing jobs in fraternity houses. He helped Professor Edward Stalker, head of the Aeronautical Engineering Department, as a Teaching Assistant. Professor Stalker operated a wind tunnel on the university’s campus and Johnson became involved in the testing programs.
Approaching Lockheed in 1932 for a job, he was turned down due to lack of experience. Kelly returned to school and in 1933 received his Master of Science Degree in Aeronautical Engineering. As he completed the requirements for his master’s degree, he augmented his income by renting Professor Stalker’s wind tunnel as a consultant to run tests on various models of Indianapolis race cars, in addition to aircraft and trains. [Kelly later stated he made more money in this year than he would in the first 10 years he worked for Lockheed.] When Kelly returned to Lockheed to reapply, he was hired as a tool designer and paid $83 per month. He was the sixth engineer to be hired by the fledgling company.

Video: F-117 Nighthawk

The winds of World War II were now beginning to be felt from across the Atlantic. Prior to the US’s entry into the conflict, Kelly helped design the P-38 for Lockheed – America’s first 400 mph aircraft. In 1938, Kelly became chief research engineer for the company, after having worn the hats of flight test engineer, stress analyst, aerodynamicist and weight engineer.
At a meeting with the Air Ministry, the British stated they needed a bomber with the bombs under the floor, forward shooting guns and another dozen or so additional effects. This required a major redesign of the aircraft. Working a straight seventy-two hours in a London hotel room over a three-day holiday, catnapping for brief periods, 28-year old Kelly Johnson completed the engineering task in time for meetings with the Air Ministry. Following a week of additional discussions, the Air Ministry chief called Lockheed’s high level executive, Courtlandt Gross aside and told him:
Mr. Gross, we like your proposal very much, and we very much and would like to deal with Lockheed. On the other hand, you must understand that we're very unused in this country to dealing--especially on transactions of such magnitude--on the technical say-so of a man as young as Mr. Johnson. And, therefore, I'll have to have your assurance . . . that if we do go forward, the aircraft resulting from the purchase will in every way live up to Mr. Johnson's specifications.
Gross reassured the British air chief of the fact Lockheed had "every confidence" in Johnson’s skill level and the trust the Air Ministry placed in Lockheed would not be regretted. The British Air Ministry signed a contract with Lockheed on June 23, 1938 for 200 airplanes, plus as many additional aircraft Lockheed could deliver by December 1939 - up to a maximum of 250 - for a total cost of $25 million. This was the largest single order ever received by an American aircraft manufacturer to that date during peacetime. The famed Hudson bomber of World War II was born and in 1938, Johnson became Lockheed’s chief research engineer. By the end of World War II, Lockheed built 3,500 Hudsons for the British.
In 1952, Johnson became chief engineer of Lockheed’s plant in Burbank, California. The company established the post of Corporate Vice President of Research and Development in 1956 and chose Johnson to be the first individual to wear the title.
As Johnson’s career with Lockheed continued, he was on the board of directors in 1964 and Lockheed’s corporate Senior Vice President in 1969. The list of planes Johnson either personally designed or had a strong influence in the design of for Lockheed reads like a Who’s Who of legendary aircraft. Numbered among these were: Model 9 Orion, P-38 Lightning, Constellation (Connie) family (begun as a commercial airliner design, then was taken over by the military during World War II as a transport), F-80 Shooting Star (America’s first successful jet fighter), F-117 Nighthawk and the spectacular SR-71 (Blackbird). He was also instrumental in designing the F-90 Interceptor, the first aircraft with power controls.
As the founder of Skunk Works, Lockheed’s supersecret organization which designed the SR-71, Johnson incorporated a ‘down-to-brass-tacks’ managerial style, summed up in his motto: Be quick, be quiet and be on time. He used a list of 14 rules to manage the company:

1. The Skunk Works manager must be delegated practically complete control of his program in all aspects. He should report to a division president or higher.
2. Strong but small project offices must be provided both by the military and industry.
3. The number of people having any connection with the project must be restricted in an almost vicious manner. Use a small number of good people (10% to 25% compared to the so-called normal systems).
4. A very simple drawing and drawing release system with great flexibility for making changes must be provided.
5. There must be a minimum number of reports required, but important work must be recorded thoroughly.
6. There must be a monthly cost review covering not only what has been spent and committed but also projected costs to the conclusion of the program. Don't have the books 90 days late, and don't surprise the customer with sudden overruns.
7. The contractor must be delegated and must assume more than normal responsibility to get good vendor bids for subcontract on the project. Commercial bid procedures are very often better than military ones.
8. The inspection system as currently used by the Skunk Works, which has been approved by both the Air Force and Navy, meets the intent of existing military requirements and should be used on new projects. Push more basic inspection responsibility back to subcontractors and vendors. Don't duplicate so much inspection.
9. The contractor must be delegated the authority to test his final product in flight. He can and must test it in the initial stages. If he doesn't, he rapidly loses his competency to design other vehicles.
10. The specifications applying to the hardware must be agreed to well in advance of contracting. The Skunk Works practice of having a specification section stating clearly which important military specification items will not knowingly be complied with and reasons therefore is highly recommended.
11. Funding a program must be timely so that the contractor doesn't have to keep running to the bank to support government projects.
12. There must be mutual trust between the military project organization and the contractor with very close cooperation and liaison on a day-to-day basis. This cuts down misunderstanding and correspondence to an absolute minimum.
13. Access by outsiders to the project and its personnel must be strictly controlled by appropriate security measures.
14. Because only a few people will be used in engineering and most other areas, ways must be provided to reward good performance by pay not based on the number of personnel supervised.

Between the years 1932 and 2003, Johnson’s achievements placed him on the receiving end of every major aviation design award. He also received the USgovernment’s highest civilian honors and became an aerospace legend. Johnson was enshrined in the national Aviation Hall of Fame in 1974 and honored by numerous prestigious organizations and institutions for his work.
When he officially retired from Lockheed in 1975, he continued to serve as a consultant for both Skunk Works and Lockheed projects. He left the board in 1980. For his 50 years of service to the corporation, Lockheed renamed their 500 acre Lockheed Rye Canyon Research facility ‘KellyJohnsonResearch & DevelopmentCenter.’
Clarence L. ‘Kelly’ Johnson died on December 21, 1990. He was 80 years old and had battled illnesses for several years. He is buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery, Los Angeles, California.

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Johnson had a 15th rule he followed, which was not a part of his 14 Rules of Management, but instead was passed word-of-mouth: "Starve before doing business with the damned Navy. They don't know what the hell they want and will drive you up a wall before they break either your heart or a more exposed part of your anatomy."
"My whole life from that time was aimed at preparing for that goal (designing airplanes)." – More than My Share of It All, Johnson’s autobiography.

By :Karen Holt