Hubert Otis Johnson III

Hubert Otis Johnson III Colonel, USAF (Ret.) Bert, as he was known to family, colleagues, and his many friends, was born on Oct. 16, 1946, in Harris County, Texas. He graduated from Annandale High School, American University (BA), and the University of Utah (MA). He was commissioned into the USAF through ROTC and served from Sept. 1969 to Oct. 1994, spending his entire career as a Special Agent with the Air Force Office of Special Investigations. He held field, staff, and command positions with AFOSI, serving overseas tours in Iran, England, Greece, and Spain. Following his retirement from the USAF, Bert was a contractor with counterintelligence roles at the Department of Energy, AFOSI, and the National Reconnaissance Office. Bert worked at the NRO until shortly before his death from pulmonary fibrosis at Inova Mount Vernon Hospital on Nov. 7, 2019. Among Bert’s many interests were maps, particularly maps of the Mediterranean region and maps on wine labels. Bert was a long-time, active member of the Washington Map Society, a past President, and a frequent contributor to the Society’s journal, The Portolan. Bert was predeceased by his parents, Brig. General Hubert O. “Hub” Johnson Jr., USAF (Ret.), and Maudie Suggs Johnson; sister Kay Johnson; and brother Joe Carroll Johnson. Bert is survived by his beloved wife of 46 years, Mary Lee Kochensparger Johnson, of Alexandria, Va. A memorial service will be held at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 228 S. Pitt St., in Old Town Alexandria, at a later date. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations in Bert’s memory to the Association of Former OSI Special Agents Scholarship Fund (4858 Palmer’s Ridge, Haymarket, VA 20169) or to the History of Cartography Project (www.supportuw.org/giveto/histcart).