William Earl Brown was One of Only Three African-American F-86 Pilots Flying Out of South Korea's Kimpo Air Base

On September 8, 1952, William Earl Brown was one of only three African-American F-86 pilots flying out of South Korea's Kimpo Air Base. Not that anyone was paying all that much attention to his skin color-his fellow pilots were more interested in his flying skills.

"Acceptance was based on your ability to perform," he said. "I really didn't experience any bad times. We knew we had to do our job; there was little room for mistakes or errors. I'm not saying that everybody was pleased with the fact that we [black aviators] were there, because some people always look for an excuse to criticize. But that can be expected."

None was more interested in how the 24-year-old first lieutenant could handle his Sabre than Major Frederick "Boots" Blesse. The major had already racked up a number of his eventual total of 10 MiG-15 kills, and he was itching to add to his "W" column. Brown was his wingman that day, and the youngster took his job seriously.

"Being a wingman is like driving down Washington, D.C.'s Beltway looking backward the entire time," the retired lieutenant general said. "The concept is that the leader concentrates on the enemy and his wingman stays with him, regardless of the maneuvers. My job was to stay with Blesse, predict his maneuvers, and protect his rear, all the while staying aware of the presence of the enemy. In no circumstances does the wingman ever leave his leader."

Brown had his hands full that day trying to keep up with his high-flying leader. Minutes after lifting off from Kimpo, Blesse, one of America's greatest fighting aviators, had already destroyed one MiG when he spotted another. Blesse dodged, darted, looped, and rolled to get into position to fire his Sabre's powerful guns, with Brown struggling to stay with him.

"When Boots fired, he must have hit the MiG's engine because he [the enemy pilot] slowed down drastically," Brown recalled. "Blesse hit his speed brakes to stay in position, but I was so hypnotized by the action that I didn't react immediately and I overtook the MiG. I came abreast of him, less than 50 yards away, and I looked directly at the pilot. He took one look at me on his flank, leaned back against the headrest and punched out.

"I guess he figured he was in real trouble if this guy could shoot him and fly in formation at the same time!"

Brown was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his role in that mission, and he went on to complete125 combat missions in Korea. During his one-year tour with the 334th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, he was wingman for three of America's leading aces of the war: Blesse, Jim Jabara, credited with15 kills, and Manuel "Pete" Fernandez, with 14.5 victories.

In 1965, then a major, the New Jersey native flew another 50 combat missions over Laos and North Vietnam as an F-4 Phantom pilot based at Ubon AB, Thailand.

Brown retired in 1985 as a lieutenant general after wearing the uniform for 35 years and accumulating more than 5,000 hours in the cockpits of a variety of fighter aircraft.