Jim arrived at K-13 in late February 1953. It was a large base with one long asphalt runway (over 9,000 ft.). The 8th Fighter-Bomber Wing on the east side and the 51st Fighter-Interceptor Wing on the west side shared the base.

Jim was assigned to the 8th Fighter-Bomber Group. The 8th FBG was attached to the 8th Fighter-Bomber Wing, which consisted of an Air Base Group, Medical Group, and Fighter-Bomber Group. The Group was still flying the F-80C Shooting Star when Jim arrived, but soon after began the transition into the F-86F Sabre.

When Jim finished orientation training, he was assigned to the 36th Fighter-Bomber Squadron. They were (and still are) called the Flying Fiends, and their squadron patch was affectionately called the "Pukin' Pup" by the pilots. There were four flights in the 36th FBS: Mike, Queen, Uncle, and Victor. Jim was assigned to Mike Flight.

The other two squadrons attached to the 8th FBG were the 35th FBS Black Panthers and the 80th FBS Headhunters. Each squadron was identified by the color of the tail flashes that were on their planes. The 35th had blue tail flashes; the 36th had red tail flashes; the 80th had yellow tail flashes.