Wing leadership changes hands Monday Published July 29, 2010 By Susan Griggs 81st Training Wing PUblic Affairs KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. -- Brig. Gen. Andrew Mueller assumes command of the 81st Training Wing from Brig. Gen. Ian Dickinson, 9 a.m. Monday on the parade field. Generals Mueller and Dickinson are both 1985 graduates of the Air Force Academy. General Mueller comes to Keesler from Eskisehir, Turkey, where he served as the deputy commander for NATO's Combined Air Operations Center 6, Allied Air Forces Southern Europe. CAOC 6 is responsible for southern region NATO air policing, as well as training and preparing defensive and offensive forces to support crisis management actions and transition to wartime employment. His duties included planning and executing air operations in the southern region as directed by the CAOC 6 commander and Component Command-Air Izmir. As deputy commander, General Mueller was the principal adviser to the CAOC 6 commander on all NATO and southern region air operations. A master air battle manager with more than 3,800 hours flying on the E-3 AWACS aircraft, General Mueller has served in various operational and staff positions. The general commanded the 964th Airborne Air Control Squadron, Tinker Air Force Base, Okla., leading the squadron through deployments in support of operations Southern Watch, Enduring Freedom and Noble Eagle. As commander of the 505th Training Group, Hurlburt Field, Fla., he was responsible for providing education and training to joint and coalition warfighters on air and space command and control weapons systems and procedures at the operational level of war. General Mueller has served on the staff of the U.S. Pacific Command where he was responsible for the integration of command and control systems, missile defense and space operations. Prior to his current assignment, he served on the Air Staff assisting with the establishment of cyber operations and warfighting as an Air Force core competency through the formulation of strategic plans for cyberspace transformation. General Dickinson, who came to Keesler in May 2009 and pinned on the rank of brigadier general a year ago, has been chosen as Director, Communications and Information, and Chief Information Officer, Headquarters Air Force Space Command, Peterson AFB, Colo. He has held a variety of positions at base, center, major command, Air Staff and Joint Staff levels in acquisition, operations, maintenance, communications and information requirements. His previous commands include a communications squadron, air base squadron and information operations group. Prior to his current assignment, he was the Deputy Chief Information Officer for the Joint Staff. As DCIO, he was responsible for assisting the Joint Staff Chief Information Officer in programming, planning, engineering and executing information technology.