The Honorable Charles Q. Brown

General Charles Q. Brown, Jr. was born on September 28, 1962 in San Antonio, Texas to Charles Q. Brown, Sr. and Frances Tanner Brown. He received his B.S. degree in civil engineering in 1984 from Texas Tech University in Lubbock and his M.S. degree in aeronautical science in 1994 from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida.

After joining the U.S. Air Force as second lieutenant in 1984, Brown received his pilot’s wings with the 82nd Squadron at Williams Air Force Base, Arizona. In 1992, Brown served as an F-16 fighter jet instructor at the U.S. Air Force Weapons School at Nellis Air Force Base for two years. In 1994, he worked as the aide-de-camp to Air Force Chief of Staff General Ronald R. Fogleman, a position he held for two years. In 2009, Brown received a promotion to brigadier general and was assigned as the commander of the 31st Fighter Wing at Aviano Air Base, Italy, which he oversaw until 2011. Brown then served as the deputy director of the Operations Directorate of U.S. Central Command at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida until 2013, when he became a major general and was appointed as director of operations for strategic deterrence for the U.S. Air Forces in Europe at Ramstein Air Force Base, Germany. In 2015, Brown received his third star and became the commander of the United States Air Forces Central Command (USAFCENT). Brown was then appointed deputy commander of U.S. Central Command in 2016, overseeing all U.S. Air Force operations in the Middle East and Central Asia. In 2018, Brown was promoted to four-star general and joined Pacific Air Forces as a commander. Brown became the first African American to lead a branch of the U.S. Armed Forces when he was confirmed as chief of staff of the U.S. Air Force in 2020. In 2023, President Joe Biden appointed Brown as the twenty-first chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, where he served until 2025.

Brown joined Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. in 1981 and the Air and Space Forces Association in 1986. Brown also joined the Council on Foreign Relations in 2020.

Brown has received numerous honors and awards including a Distinguished Alumni Award from Texas Tech University in 2012, the Black Engineer of the Year Award in 2014, on Time Magazine’s “The Most Influential People of 2020” list, and the General Jimmy Doolittle Award from the MIT Security Studies Program in 2021. Brown’s military decorations and awards include the Defense Force Distinguished Service Medal, the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal, the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Bronze Star Medal, the Joint Service Commendation Medal, and the Legion of Merit. Brown was inducted into the Tuskegee Airmen Inc. as an honorary member in 2021.

Brown resides in Fort Meyer, Virginia with his wife, Sharene Brown. They have two adult sons, Sean and Ross.

General Charles Q. Brown, Jr. was interviewed by The HistoryMakers on January 25, 2023.