"1950-12-04"^^ . "\"He died in the wreckage of his airplane with courage and unfathomable dignity. He willingly gave his life to tear down barriers to freedom of others.\""@en . . . "Chosin Reservoir, North Korea"@en . "Presidential Unit Citation .svg"@en . "Jesse LeRoy Brown (13 October 1926 \u2013 4 December 1950) was the first African-American aviator in the United States Navy, a recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross, and the first African-American naval officer killed in the Korean War. Brown's successes in the segregated and desegregated U.S. military were memorialized in several books. The frigate USS Jesse L. Brown (FF-1089) was named in his honor."@en . "504477"^^ . "Chosin Reservoir, North Korea"@en . . . . . . . . "National Defense Service Medal ribbon.svg"@en . . . "United Nations Service Medal for Korea ribbon.png"@en . . . "0"^^ . "service-star"@en . ""@en . . "Purple Heart BAR.svg"@en . "1926-10-13"^^ . . . "Distinguished Flying Cross ribbon.svg"@en . . "Combat Action Ribbon.svg"@en . "*"@en . . "#c6dbf7"@en . . "106"^^ . "Jesse L. Brown"@en . . ""@en . "1946"^^ . "Place of burial"@en . . . "United States of America"@en . . "award-V"@en . . "Jesse LeRoy Brown (13 October 1926 \u2013 4 December 1950) was the first African-American aviator in the United States Navy, a recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross, and the first African-American naval officer killed in the Korean War. Born in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, to an impoverished family, Brown was avidly interested in aircraft from a young age. He graduated as salutatorian of his high school, notwithstanding its racial segregation, and was later awarded a degree from The Ohio State University. Brown enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1946, becoming a midshipman. Brown earned his pilot wings on 21 October 1948 amid a flurry of press coverage; in January 1949 he was assigned to Fighter Squadron 32 aboard the USS Leyte. At the outset of the Korean War, the Leyte was ordered to the Korean Peninsula, arriving in October 1950. Brown, an ensign, flew 20 combat missions before his F4U Corsair aircraft came under fire and crashed on a remote mountaintop on 4 December 1950 while supporting ground troops at the Battle of Chosin Reservoir. Brown died of his wounds despite the efforts of wingman Thomas J. Hudner, Jr., who intentionally crashed his own aircraft in a rescue attempt, for which he was awarded the Medal of Honor. Brown's successes in the segregated and desegregated U.S. military were memorialized in several books. The frigate USS Jesse L. Brown (FF-1089) was named in his honor."@en . "award-star"@en . . . . . . "Jesse LeRoy Brown"@en . . . . "Air Medal ribbon.svg"@en . . . "Korean War Service Medal ribbon.png"@en . "Jesse L. Brown"@en . . "KSMRib.svg"@en . . "--02-17"^^ . . "30"^^ . . "Hattiesburg, Mississippi"@en . "* '''"@en .