Brig. Gen. John M. Hillyer is the Mobilization Assistant to the Commander, U.S. Air Forces Central Command, Southwest Asia. As the Mobilization Assistant, the general assists with the development of contingency plans and the execution of air operations for the 20-nation U.S. Central Command area of responsibility covering Central and Southwest Asia.
Brig. Gen. Hillyer is a 1988 honors graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy with a degree in Military History. He has served in a wide variety of assignments within the Joint Staff, Pacific Command, Headquarters Air Force, Pacific Air Forces, Air Combat Command, Air Education and Training Command and the Air National Guard, joining the Air Force Reserve in 1999.
Brig. Gen. Hillyer has flown Air Sovereignty Alert missions in support of Operation Noble Eagle and combat missions in support of operations Southern Watch, Southern Focus, Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom.
EDUCATION
1988 Bachelor of Science degree in Military History, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colo.
1994 Joint Firepower Control Course, Hurlburt Field, Fla.
1995 Squadron Officer School, by correspondence
1995 Master of Aeronautical Science, Embry Riddle Aeronautical University
2004 Joint Air & Space Operations Center Course, Hurlburt Field, Fla.
2004 Air Command and Staff College, by correspondence
2006 Air War College, by correspondence
2012 Advanced Joint Professional Military Education, Joint Forces Staff College, Norfolk, Va.
2013 Reserve Component National Security Course, National Defense University, Washington, D.C.
2014 National and International Security Leadership Seminar, Washington, D.C.
2018 Combined Force Air Component Commander Course, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2018 Combined Force Maritime Component Commander Flag Course, Naples, Italy
ASSIGNMENTS
1. June 1988 - June 1989, student, Undergraduate Pilot Training, Williams Air Force Base, Ariz.
2. July 1989 - September 1989, student, Lead-in Fighter Training, Holloman AFB, N.M.
3. October 1989 - June 1990, student, F-16 Replacement Training Unit, Luke AFB, Ariz.
4. June 1990 - June 1994, F-16 Weapons and Tactics Officer, Mission Commander, Chief of Standardization and Evaluation, 14th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Misawa Air Base, Japan
5. June 1994 - May 1996, Flight Commander, Aviation Brigade Air Liaison Officer, 25th Air Support Operations Squadron, Wheeler Army Airfield, Hawaii
6. May 1996 - September 1997, F-16 Instructor Pilot, Chief of Training, 195th Fighter Squadron, Tucson Air National Guard Base, Ariz.
7. September 1997 - April 1999, F-15 Pilot, 154th Operations Group; Chief of Alaska and CONUS Exercise Branch, Operational Plans, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces, Hickam AFB, Hawaii
8. April 1999 - May 2001, Chief of Munitions Branch, Weapons and Tactics, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces, Hickam AFB, Hawaii
9. May 2001 - September 2003, F-16 Mission Commander, 466th Fighter Squadron, Hill AFB, Utah
10. September 2003 - April 2007, Chief of Strategy Division and Commander, Detachment 1, 701st Combat Operations Squadron, Hickam AFB, Hawaii; Deputy Chief, 5th Generation Fighter Branch, Operational Requirements, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces, Hickam AFB, Hawaii
11. April 2007 - April 2011, F-22 pilot, Deputy Commander, then Commander, 477th Fighter Group, Elmendorf AFB, Alaska
12. April 2011 - October 2012, Individual Mobilization Augmentee to the Director, Programs and Requirements, Office of the Air Force Reserve, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Arlington, Va.
13. October 2012 - October 2013, Political-Military Affairs Strategist, Partnership Strategy, Joint Staff J5, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
14. October 2013 - December 2014, Mobilization Assistant to the Director of Air and Cyberspace Operations, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii
15. December 2014 - December 2015, Mobilization Assistant to the Chief of Staff, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii
16. December 2015 - October 2018, Mobilization Assistant to the Director for Operations, J3, Headquarters U.S. Pacific Command, Camp H.M. Smith, Hawaii
17. October 2018 - present, Mobilization Assistant to the Commander, U.S. Air Forces Central Command, Southwest Asia.
SUMMARY OF JOINT ASSIGNMENTS
1. October 2012 - October 2013, Political-Military Affairs Strategist, Partnership Strategy, Joint Staff J5, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va., as a colonel
2. December 2015 - October 2018, Mobilization Assistant to the Director for Operations, J3, Headquarters U.S. Pacific Command, Camp H.M. Smith, Hawaii, as a brigadier general
FLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating: command pilot
Flight Hours: more than 2,300
Aircraft flown: F-15, F-16 and F-22
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Defense Superior Service Medal
Legion of Merit
Defense Meritorious Service Medal
Meritorious Service Medal with three oak leaf clusters
Air Medal with two oak leaf clusters
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Second Lieutenant June 1, 1988
First Lieutenant June 1, 1990
Captain June 1, 1992
Major October 1, 2000
Lieutenant Colonel August 18, 2005
Colonel February 2, 2010
Brigadier General March 26, 2015
(Current as of December 2018)