When you reach Air Force Maj. Paul Brown on his cellphone, you get this message: “I’m either flyin’ or sleepin,’ so leave a message.”

On this particular occasion, he had been flying. “I’m actually training my replacement,”  the Duncanville native said.

Brown flies the A-10 Thunderbolt II in the service. From February to the middle of November, he demonstrates the craft’s prowess in air shows all over the U.S. and Canada. The rest of the year, he’s training future pilots.

With Brown scheduled to leave active duty soon, someone else will have to take over for him.  

“I grew up loving airplanes. That’s what led me to the Air Force,” said Brown, currently stationed with the 357^th Fighter Squadron, 355th Fighter Wing at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson, Ariz. “I always loved going to air shows, and I’ve just put that love into action.”

Brown has always had an aptitude for flight. When only two out of 34 trainees qualified for pilot status at pilot training in Del Rio, Brown was one of them.  

“My buddy took an F-16, and I got the A-10,” he said.

The A-10, a single-seat plane, first came in to prominence during Desert Storm I and more recently in Afghanistan, Brown said. Unlike some other planes, it’s ideal for rough-terrain landings.

“It’s like a flying tank,” Brown said. “I’ve seen my share of combat [in Afghanistan] and I’ve seen how it affects the troops on the ground.

“But from where I am, this is a tough airplane. I’ve come out of the fight with small holes in the plane and things like that, but I don’t ever feel it.“She’s a tough old girl.”

It won’t be long before Brown embarks on the next phase of his career – as a Reservist in Fort Smith, Ark. He will still fly, but not A-10s. In addition, he’ll go to Iraq for six weeks on and six weeks off in a civilian capacity as a member of the Air National Guard.

Brown spent the first 18 years of his life in Duncanville, the oldest of Mack and Paula Brown’s three sons. Brown’s parents have since moved south of Denton, but his grandparents, Melvin and Pearl Brown, still live in Duncanville.

Airplanes and the military have played a big part in the lives of the Brown family. Paula is a pilot for United Airlines. Melvin Brown was in the Army infantry in World War II and won a Bronze Star for his service in the Philippines.

All three Brown boys attended the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. One of them is flying F-16s in South Korea.

In addition, Paul Brown’s wife, Teresa, is a civil engineer in the Air Force and is deployed “all over the place,” Brown said.

In high school, Brown played on some of the best baseball teams in the nation at Duncanville.  

“That was unfortunate, because I was a really mediocre athlete,” said the former outfielder and third baseman. “I was so busy with taking AP classes and working at Best Buy that I really didn’t have time to concentrate on baseball.

“I think maybe if I had gone to a school with a worse program, I’d have played a little more.”

Loyd Brumfield is the editor of the Best Southwest edition of neighborsgo. Contact him at lbrumfield@neighborsgo.com.  or at 214-977-7686.