Wing change of command ceremony May 2 for Delaware Air National Guard

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NEW CASTLE AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, Del. --  The 166th Airlift Wing, Delaware Air National Guard, will conduct a change of command ceremony Saturday May 2 at 1:30 p.m., with Col. Michael J. Feeley, wing commander, relinquishing command to Col. Donald R. Bevis, the current vice commander.

The ceremony will be held inside the hangar on the air base (address: 2600 Spruance Drive, New Castle, DE 19720) during the unit's monthly drill.

Brigadier Gen. David E. Deputy, assistant adjutant general for air, Delaware National Guard, will be the presiding official.

Feeley, a resident of Media, Pa., has led the wing since June 2012. He is a master navigator with over 5,700 hours of military flight time, including over 400 combat hours in operations Desert Storm, Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom. He has deployed nine times to Southwest Asia in support of operations Desert Storm, Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom and New Dawn. He also deployed last February to the Republic of Korea.

Feeley started his military career in 1982 on Air Force active duty as a navigator at Clark Air Base, Republic of the Phillipines, then as an instructor navigator at Pope Air Force Base, N.C. He has spent the last 26 years of his 32-year military career with the 166th Airlift Wing in numerous leadership positions to include commanding the 166th Operations Group before he became wing commander. Feeley now becomes the director of personnel, Joint Force Headquarters, Delaware National Guard.

Bevis, a resident of Annapolis, Md., is a master pilot with over 1,700 flight hours. He moves into the wing's top position after serving since July 2014 as the vice commander. Bevis began his military career 29 years ago as an enlisted Airman in the Arkansas ANG in 1986. He became an officer in 1993, a C-130 pilot in 1995, and has held four positions of increasing responsibility at the National Guard Bureau. Bevis first served in the Delaware ANG as the commander, 166th Mission Support Group from July 2011 to July 2012. In 2013 he earned a Master of Strategic Studies, U.S. Army War College, Carlisle, Pa. He next served as the ANG Senior Policy Advisor, Office of the Secretary of Defense Reserve Forces Policy Board, from July 2013 to July 2014, then returned to the 166th Airlift Wing as vice commander.

"Colonel Mike Feeley leaves the wing with a strong flying operation and a stellar safety record with over 171,000 accident-free flying hours, a manning level over 100 percent due to an outstanding recruiting campaign, a strengthened network warfare squadron, and an organization better integrated with the entire Delaware National Guard," said Brig. Gen. David E. Deputy, assistant adjutant general for air, Delaware National Guard.

"Colonel Don Bevis will be taking command of an organization well-positioned for the future, and he is extremely well-qualified to guide the wing in order to master the challenges ahead."

This release is in the public domain, and any part may be used as written.

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