Retired Brig. Gen. Charles Brown Jr. has been named director of Military Affairs for the Arkansas Economic Development Commission (AEDC). He succeeds retired Col. Robert Ator II who is now Secretary of the Arkansas Department of Veterans Affairs.
According to a Monday (Aug. 11) AEDC press release, Brown’s role is to strengthen and sustain the military installations in Arkansas to drive economic growth in local communities. He is the first point of contact between the Arkansas government and the U.S. military in economic development projects.
Arkansas is home to five major military installations, including the Little Rock Air Force Base, Camp Robinson in North Little Rock, Pine Bluff Arsenal, Ebbing Air National Guard Base in Fort Smith, and Fort Chaffee Joint Maneuver Training Center. Arkansas also is home to the foreign military pilot training center located at Ebbing in Fort Smith.
“We are excited to welcome Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Charles Brown back to the Natural State to serve as AEDC’s Director of Military Affairs,” Clint O’Neal, AEDC executive director said in a statement. “He has experience both in our state and at the national level that will be invaluable in his new role, working to protect military installations in Arkansas. Supporting the state’s military installations is an essential part of our economic development strategy.”
Brown held numerous leadership and command roles during his military career. His final posting was as chief of staff for the Headquarters Air Mobility Command at Scott Air Force Base in Illinois. Prior to this posting, he was the senior defense official and defense attache for the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv, Israel.
He also held multiple leadership roles at the Little Rock Air Force Base, including serving as commander of the 19th Airlift Wing from May 2015 to July 2017. Earlier postings at the Little Rock Air Force Base included chief of wing safety for the 314th Airlift Wing (July 2008-March 2009), commander of the 62nd Airlift Squadron (April 2009-May 2011), and deputy commander of the 314th Operations Group (May 2011-July 2011).
Brown has more than 1,600 flight hours, including 300 combat hours and 160 combat sorties with a command pilot rating.
He graduated in 1994 from Florida State University with a bachelor’s degree and earned his commission through the Air Force ROTC. He is also a distinguished graduate of the Squadron Officer School at Maxwell Air Force Base and received a Master’s degree in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College. Brown also served as a National Security Fellow at Harvard University in 2012.
“It is my honor to be back in the great state of Arkansas which has been the backbone and foundation of my military career and a part of my family’s greatest memories,” Brown said. “I have served in the state numerous times, concluding with Commanding Little Rock Air Force Base, and the 19th Airlift Wing.”