Brig. Gen. John M. Hillyer is the Mobilization Assistant to the Director for Operations, Headquarters, U.S. Pacific Command, Camp H.M. Smith, Hawaii. He serves as a joint/combined military operations advisor to the Commander, U.S. Pacific Command. He assists with all aspects of military deployments, operations, training, exercises, and multi-national programs throughout the USPACOM theater, and plans/executes full spectrum joint operations during crisis and contingency.
General 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 Pacific Air Forces, Air Combat Command, Air Education and Training Command, and the Air National Guard, joining the Air Force Reserve in 1999.
General 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.
ASSIGNMENTS
1. June 1988 - June 1989, Student, undergraduate pilot training, Williams AFB, 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 AAF, Hawaii
6. May 1996 - September 1997, F-16 Instructor Pilot, Chief of Training, 195th Fighter Squadron, Tucson ANG Base, Ariz.
7. September 1997 - April 1999, F-15 Pilot, 154th Operations Group; Chief of Alaska and continental U.S. Exercise Branch, Headquarters PACAF Operational Plans, Hickam AFB, Hawaii
8. April 1999 - May 2001, Chief of Munitions Branch, Headquarters PACAF Weapons and Tactics, 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, Headquarters PACAF Operational Requirements, 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, IMA to the Director, Programs and Requirements, Office of the Air Force Reserve, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, the Pentagon, Washington, D.C.
13. October 2012 - October 2013, Political-Military Affairs Strategist, Partnership Strategy, Joint Staff J5, the Pentagon, Washington, D.C.
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 - present, Mobilization Assistant to the Director for Operations, Headquarters, U.S. Pacific Command, Camp H.M. Smith, Hawaii
SUMMARY OF JOINT ASSIGNMENTS
1. October 2012 - October 2013, Political-Military Affairs Strategist, Partnership Strategy, Joint Staff J5, the Pentagon, Washington, D.C., as a colonel
2. December 2015 - present, Mobilization Assistant to the Director for Operations, 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, F-22
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Legion of Merit
Defense Meritorious Service Medal
Meritorious Service Medal with three oak leaf clusters
Air Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Air Force Commendation Medal
Army Commendation Medal
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Second Lieutenant June 1, 1988
First Lieutenant June 1, 1990
Captain June 1, 1992
Major Oct. 1, 2000
Lieutenant Colonel Aug. 18, 2005
Colonel Feb. 2, 2010
Brigadier General March 26, 2015
(Current as of January 2016)