 Brown became commander of the 62d Troop Carrier Group at McChord Air Force Base , Washington , on 17 July 1950 . This group operated Douglas C @-@ 124 Globemaster II and Fairchild C @-@ 119 Flying Boxcar aircraft between the West Coast and Japan . With the outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950 , this mission acquired great importance . In July 1951 he assumed command of the 56th Fighter Interceptor Wing at Selfridge Air Force Base , Michigan , part of the Air Defense Command , although he had never flown fighters before . He learned to fly the Lockheed T @-@ 33 Shooting Star , North American F @-@ 86 Sabre and Lockheed F @-@ 94 Starfire . On 1 January 1952 Brown became Assistant Director of Operations of the Fifth Air Force in South Korea . He became Director on 15 July 1952 . 
