Austin S. Miller

Miller was born in Honolulu, Hawaii on May 15, 1961.[3] He graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1983 and was commissioned as an infantry officer in the United States Army.

Miller was commissioned as a Second lieutenant in 1983 after graduation from United States Military Academy at West Point. After completing Ranger School, he was assigned a platoon in 3rd Battalion, 325th Infantry (Airborne), 82nd Airborne Division. Afterwards, he was a platoon leader with A Company, 2nd Ranger Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment from January 1986 to May 1987.[4] He completed Infantry Officer Advanced Course in June 1989 and was assigned to South Korea as a Company Commander with 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry (Mechanized), 2nd Infantry Division, Eighth United States Army. Later, he was an instructor at the Special Operations Division School of the Americas at Fort Benning, Georgia from April 1991 to April 1992. In 1992, Miller completed a specialized selection course and operator training course for assignment to 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment – Delta (1st SFOD-D), or Delta Force at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, where he held numerous leadership positions including squadron operations officer, troop commander, operational support troop commander, selection and training commander, A Squadron commander, as well as deputy commander and unit commanding officer from 2005 to 2007.[5] He participated in numerous combat operations during Operation Gothic Serpent in Somalia, Operation Joint Endeavor in Bosnia, Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. In October 1993, Miller was the ground force commander during the Battle of Mogadishu while Lieutenant Colonel Gary L. Harrell held operational command of C Squadron, 1st SFOD-D. Miller graduated from United States Army Command and General Staff College in June 1997. He is a graduate of the United States Marine Corps War College, 2003 and Joint and Combined Warfighting School.

As a Colonel, Miller received assignment as Director of the Interagency Task Force, United States Special Operations Command, MacDill Air Force Base, Florida from August 2007 to June 2008. Hs was assigned Deputy Director for Special Operations, J-37, The Joint Staff, Washington, D.C. till 2009. From September 2011 through August 2012, Miller was special assistant to the Director of the Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization in Arlington, Virginia. He was a special assistant to the deputy commanding general, United States Special Operations Command in Washington D.C. from August 2012 through June 2013. From June 2013 to June 2014, Miller was commanding general of the Combined Forces Special Operations Component Command in Afghanistan, or CFSOCC-A, responsible for employment and coordination of special operations forces and assets to achieve NATO and US military objectives. In 2014, he became commanding general of the United States Army Maneuver Center of Excellence at Fort Benning.[6] From 2016 to 2018, Miller served as the commanding general of the Joint Special Operations Command.[7] In 2018, he assumed command of United States Forces — Afghanistan and the Resolute Support mission.

On October 18, 2018, Miller was in the room at the governor's compound in southern Kandahar when a Taliban gunman shot Abdul Raziq. Miller was not harmed,[8][9] but drew his sidearm during the shooting, waited until the wounded were attended, and flew out with the casualties afterwards[10] which included Brigadier General Jeffrey Smiley.[11]