From the Department of War, May 22, 2026 

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth announced May 22 that the president has made the following nominations: 

Navy Captain Stephen W. Aldridge for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Aldridge is currently serving as deputy director, Politico Military Affairs – Asia, Joint Staff, Pentagon, Washington, D.C.    

Navy Captain Joseph A. Baggett for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Baggett is currently serving as commanding officer, Surface Warfare Officer School Command, Newport, Rhode Island.       

Navy Captain Sean P. Barbabella for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Barbabella is currently serving as the physician to the President of the United States of America, White House, Washington, D.C. 

Navy Captain Thomas T. Bodine for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Bodine is currently serving as chief of staff, Naval Air Forces/Naval Air Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet, San Diego, California.    

Navy Captain Matthew L. Bolls for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Bolls is currently serving as executive officer to the Director, Defense Logistics Agency, Fort Belvoir, Virginia.     

Navy Captain Jeffrey P. Buschmann for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Buschmann is currently serving as information warfare commander, Carrier Strike Group TEN, Norfolk, Virginia.       

Navy Captain Michael S. Carl for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Carl is currently serving as executive assistant to the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Fleet Readiness and Logistics, N4, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Pentagon, Washington, D.C.     

Navy Robert R. Christian for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Christian is currently serving as fleet chaplain, U.S. Fleet Forces Command, Norfolk, Virginia.      

Navy Captain David S. Cox for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Cox is currently serving as chief of staff, Submarine Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. 

Navy Captain John D. Craddock for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Craddock is currently serving as director, Submarine Officer Career Management and Distribution Division (PERS-42), Navy Personnel Command, Millington, Tennessee.    

Navy Captain Christopher D. Eng for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Eng is currently serving as executive assistant to the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Information Warfare, N2, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Pentagon, Washington, D.C.     

Navy Captain William D. Gallagher for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Gallagher is currently serving as director, Legislative Affairs, U.S. Special Operations Command Detachment, Washington, D.C.    

Navy Captain Eric M. Gardner for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Gardner is currently serving as vice commander, Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland.     

Navy Captain Christopher F. Hill for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Hill is currently serving as chief of staff, Naval Air Force Atlantic, Norfolk, Virginia.    

Navy Captain Jeffrey W. Hill for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Hill is currently serving as chief of staff, Navy Installations Command, Washington Navy Yard, Washington, D.C. 

Navy Captain Jeffrey Juergens for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Juergens is currently serving as executive assistant to the Director, Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program, Department of the Navy/ Department of Energy, Washington Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.    

Navy Captain Thomas M. Ogden for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Ogden is currently serving as executive assistant to the Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.    

Navy Captain Eric J. Rozek for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Rozek is currently serving as executive assistant to the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations, Integration of Capabilities and Resources, N8, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Pentagon, Washington, D.C.    

Navy Captain William A. Shafer for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Shafer is currently serving as commodore, Naval Special Warfare Development Group, Virginia Beach, Virginia.     

Navy Captain Ryan Stormer for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Stormer is currently serving as deputy lead special trial counsel, Office of Special Trial Counsel, Washington, D.C.     

Navy Captain Aaron J. Taylor for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Taylor is currently serving as director for Operations, U.S. Pacific Fleet, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. 

Navy Captain Clifford W. Toraason for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half). Toraason is currently serving as executive assistant to the Commander, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, Camp H.M. Smith, Hawaii. 

From U.S. 6th Fleet Public Affairs

ROTA, Spain – The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Roosevelt (DDG 80) departed its homeport of Rota, Spain, to execute its ninth Forward-Deployed Naval Forces-Europe (FDNF-E) patrol, May 22, 2026.

Roosevelt, named after U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his wife Eleanor, is one of five U.S. Navy destroyers based in Rota, Spain and assigned to Commander, Task Force 65 in support of NATO’s Integrated Air Missile Defense architecture. These FDNF-E ships have the flexibility to operate throughout the waters of Europe and Africa, from the Cape of Good Hope to the Arctic Circle, demonstrating their mastery of the maritime domain.

“Throughout the past seven weeks, this crew has trained hard, prepared relentlessly, and proven that we are ready for whatever our next mission demands,” says Cmdr. R. J. DaPrato, commanding officer, USS Roosevelt. “It is an honor to stand shoulder to shoulder with these sailors as we head to sea and continue the legacy of excellence that this ship has earned.” 

Roosevelt returned from a six-and-a-half-month patrol on March 27, 2026. During the patrol, the ship operated in the 5^th and 6^th fleet Area of Operations. For the past seven weeks, the crew has been working diligently to prepare for the patrol, focusing on maintenance and training. Roosevelt is scheduled to conduct operations and exercises as directed by U.S. European Command (EUCOM) and C6F, including working directly alongside allies and partners throughout the Mediterranean Sea and Eastern Atlantic Ocean.

U.S. 6th Fleet, headquartered in Naples, Italy, conducts the full spectrum of joint and naval operations, often in concert with allied and interagency partners, in order to advance U.S. national interests and security and stability in Europe and Africa.

From RTX

Effort aims to deliver more flexible, scalable missile propulsion across weapon systems

ARLINGTON, Va. (May 26, 2026) — Raytheon, an RTX (NYSE: RTX) business, in collaboration with Northrop Grumman, has been awarded a phase two contract from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Burn n’ Go program to continue the development of a new solid rocket motor (SRM) design. This new capability will decouple post-manufactured motors from traditional, single-use designs, enabling a composable motor capable of meeting multiple mission needs by adjusting thrust on demand.

The award follows a highly accelerated, seven-month phase one effort in which Raytheon and Northrop Grumman demonstrated the feasibility of this new propulsion approach. The technology is intended to support a wider range of missions and weapon systems by giving the military more options from a common, single-use motor design. Under the phase two contract, Raytheon’s Advanced Technology team will further mature and scale its solution, followed by a series of demonstrations to show how it performs in increasingly realistic rocket motor configurations.

“Solid rocket motor production has become a critical bottleneck for many missile programs,” said Colin Whelan, president of Advanced Technology at Raytheon. “By pursuing a composable approach to how these motors are designed and built, we’re helping lay the groundwork for faster, more adaptable munitions production across multiple mission sets.” 

As prime on the contract, Raytheon is partnering with Northrop Grumman’s Allegany Ballistic Laboratory (ABL), which has extensive expertise in solid rocket motor design and manufacturing. The team also includes Luna Innovations, contributing its novel material development capabilities, to advance a solution that aligns with DARPA’s vision for more flexible, scalable missile propulsion.

This collaborative approach builds on the Advanced Technology team’s broader composable weapons strategy, which is focused on reducing cycle time, lowering costs and accelerating missile development.

From General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc.

SAN DIEGO – General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. flew its MQ-9B Remotely Piloted Aircraft for the first time with Airborne Early Warning (AEW) pods. The much-anticipated AEW capability is being provided through a partnership with Saab. Once the AEW sensor, named LoyalEye, is made available to MQ-9B operators and new customers, it will deliver persistent and cost-effective air surveillance capabilities in regions where it is currently unavailable. 

GA-ASI conducted a validation flight of MQ-9B using AEW radar pods on May 19 from GA-ASI’s Desert Horizon flight operations facility in Southern California using a company-owned aircraft. The flight signaled the first step in a development process that is expected to take several months and culminate with a full-capability demonstration later this year.

GA-ASI and Saab announced their partnership last year with the intention of bringing AEW capability to the MQ-9B platform.

MQ-9B models include the SkyGuardian and SeaGuardian, the United Kingdom’s MQ-9B variant known as Protector, and the new MQ-9B STOL (Short Takeoff and Landing) configuration currently in development for naval aircraft carriers.

“AEW for MQ-9B will offer critical aloft sensing to defend against tactical air munitions, guided missiles, drones, fighter and bomber aircraft, and other threats. Operational availability for a medium-altitude, long-endurance UAS is the highest of any military aircraft, and as an unmanned platform, its aircrews are not put into harm’s way,” said GA-ASI President David R. Alexander.

“This partnership integrates MQ-9B with LoyalEye, equipping operators with vital information for critical decision-making. LoyalEye extends the capabilities of manned systems, and it offers persistent surveillance and greater operational flexibility. This enhances situational awareness and boosts mission success,” said Carl-Johan Bergholm, Senior Vice President and Head of Business Area Surveillance at Saab.

GA-ASI and Saab’s AEW offering will span a wide range of applications, including early detection and warning, long-range detection and tracking, and simultaneous target tracking and flexible system integration — all over line-of-sight and SATCOM connectivity.

From Saildrone. May 21, 2026

ALAMEDA, Calif. — Saildrone today announced it will deploy 10 Saildrone Explorer unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) during the 2026 hurricane season to support the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in its mission to forecast hurricanes, protect lives and property, and safeguard national and economic security.

The mission continues a multi-year collaboration between NOAA and Saildrone that began in 2021. NOAA scientists will define the operational objectives and provide mission tasking as tropical storms develop; Saildrone will operate and navigate the USVs to deliver in situ oceanographic and meteorological data in real time.

The Saildrone Explorers will be strategically positioned in the western tropical/subtropical Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and Gulf of America from July to November. As tropical cyclones develop, Saildrone mission operators will coordinate with NOAA to position the USVs in and around storms.  

NOAA scientists at the Atlantic Oceanographic & Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) and the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL) will use Saildrone data to study how exchanges of heat, moisture, and momentum between the ocean and the atmosphere influence storm intensity. Rapid intensification, defined as an increase in a hurricane’s maximum sustained winds of at least 30 knots (35 mph) in 24 hours, remains one of the most difficult hurricane behaviors to predict.

“This multi-year mission between NOAA and Saildrone is helping to improve our understanding of how hurricanes intensify, including when they strengthen rapidly before landfall,” said Greg Foltz, an oceanographer at NOAA and one of the principal investigators on the mission. “Each storm we observe gives us more data to evaluate and improve prediction models, which is critical for increasing forecast confidence, extending warning lead times, and strengthening the nation’s preparedness for high-impact weather events.”

Each Saildrone Explorer will be equipped with a suite of meteorological and oceanographic (metocean) sensors to measure wind speed and direction, air, surface, and sub-surface temperature, relative humidity, barometric pressure, salinity, and wave height and period. Additionally, two USVs will carry NOAA ASVCO2 sensors to measure carbon dioxide exchange between the ocean and the atmosphere. These observations will support NOAA’s hurricane research and modeling efforts. 

“The NOAA hurricane mission is one of Saildrone’s longest-running and most successful partnerships, and also one of the most technically demanding,” said Matt Womble, vice president of government relations at Saildrone. “This mission reinforces the value of mature, long-duration uncrewed systems for operating in environments where persistent data collection is otherwise impossible by traditional means. Better hurricane data supports better forecasts, and better forecasts strengthen national resilience—protecting lives, infrastructure, commerce, and critical operations. Saildrone is tremendously proud to continue this work with NOAA.”

Hurricanes pose a major threat to national and economic security, with impacts that can include loss of life, severe damage to homes and businesses, disruption to ports and supply chains, impacts to critical infrastructure, and interruptions to military and emergency-response operations. According to NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), between 1980 and 2004, tropical cyclones accounted for 52.9% of all billion-dollar disasters in the United States—more than wildfires, drought, flooding, freeze, severe storms, and winter storms combined. The estimated total damages (CPI-adjusted) from tropical cyclones over that time period exceed $1.5T.

Recent storms, including Hurricane Idalia in 2023, Hurricane Ian in 2022, and Hurricane Harvey in 2017, have rapidly intensified just before landfall, underscoring the need for better observations in the ocean regions where storms gain strength. NOAA aims to improve weather forecasting models, ensuring that state and local officials, and by extension the general public, receive longer lead times to prepare and evacuate accordingly. 

Saildrone has supported NOAA hurricane research across multiple seasons, deploying five USVs in 2021, seven in 2022, and 12 in both 2023 and 2024. Saildrone Explorers are multi-mission USVs, and several have been deployed on multiple hurricane missions; to date, 21 different USVs have been used in these missions. Since 2021, Saildrone has intercepted 21 named hurricanes and tropical storms on 46 occasions. In total, Explorer USVs have spent more than 2,600 days on mission supporting hurricane research. During each mission, Saildrone’s fleet has been co-located with NOAA’s aerial and sub-surface assets to form a comprehensive picture of the air and water column.    

The Saildrone Explorer is a 7-meter (23-foot) USV designed to deliver continuous metocean observations across remote and extreme environments. The USVs used for the hurricane monitoring mission are equipped with a shorter, ruggedized “hurricane” wing, designed for the extreme wind and sea state conditions inside a tropical cyclone.

In addition to the 2026 hurricane mission, Saildrone will operate more than 75 USVs globally this year, supporting national and homeland security, ocean mapping, and research.

From U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters, May 21, 2026

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Coast Guard has awarded a $17.8 million contract to Ocean Construction Services Inc. for the construction of new engineering and weapons training facilities at Training Center (TRACEN) Yorktown, Virginia.

The project is a critical step in preparing Coast Guard personnel to operate the service’s next generation of Offshore Patrol Cutters (OPCs) and Waterways Commerce Cutters (WCCs).

“This state-of-the-art training facility is a cornerstone of our modernization effort, ensuring our investment in a 21st-century fleet is supported by the men and women who carry out our critical maritime missions,” said Jennifer Sinclair, director of Force Readiness Command. “We shape the future of maritime security through advanced training, equipping our personnel with the skills and confidence to meet tomorrow’s challenges.”

The project will add 18,700 square feet of building space to Samuel Travis Hall, the training center’s Cutter and Weapons Training Building. This expansion will ensure tailored ship-specific engineering and weapons training facilities for the modern fleet. This building is named in honor of Captain Samuel Travis, Captain of the Revenue Cutter Surveyor, which achieved legendary fame in the War of 1812 during battle on the York River, near TRACEN Yorktown.

The expansion includes mock-up engine rooms, training labs, classrooms, a mock-up training space and other administrative needs to support comprehensive “C-School” training for future cutter crews. This project furthers the Service’s historic transformation made possible by Fiscal Year 2025 Reconciliation by enabling world-class training for two of the Coast Guard’s newest fleets: 25 OPCs and 30 WCCs.

The 25 OPCs are set to replace the aging fleet of medium-endurance cutters, some of which have been in service for over 50 years. These new cutters will form the core of the Coast Guard’s offshore presence, bridging the capabilities between the service’s National Security Cutters and Fast Response Cutters to save lives, control, secure, and defend U.S. borders and maritime approaches, and respond to contingencies. 

The 30 WCCs in the new “Chief Petty Officer class” will replace the legacy inland tender fleet and strengthen Coast Guard operations to facilitate maritime commerce vital to economic prosperity and strategic mobility. WCCs’ specialized capabilities are essential for maintaining the United States’ 12,000-mile Marine Transportation System, a critical waterway network supporting over $5.4 trillion in annual economic activity and millions of American jobs. 

Using the $25 billion provided by the historic Fiscal Year 2025 Reconciliation, the Coast Guard has already ordered over $13 billion in new fleet assets and capabilities. This rapid investment demonstrates the Coast Guard’s commitment to modernizing acquisitions, delivering next-generation technology, and revitalizing American shipbuilding.

By Richard R. Burgess, Senior Editor 

ARLINGTON, Va. — A Texas-based software company has demonstrated the ability of artificial intelligence (AI) to maintain integrity while adapting to changing scenarios and environments at sea. 

Striveworks, based in Austin, said in a recent release that it “has demonstrated that AI can operate continuously across multiple vessels simultaneously, maintaining accuracy even as conditions change at sea” during a demonstration for the U.S. Navy. 

“We’ve gotten the data, the results, and we’re pretty proud of that,” said Jim Rebesco, CEO and co-founder of Striveworks, during an interview with Seapower.  

“We’ve demonstrated the ability for AI to play a critical role in targeting custody cycle but in a way that’s very resilient, very trusted, and frankly, robust with environmental or adversary change,” Rebesco told Seapower. “We provide the AI-based tools that enable you to autonomously process that data and ultimately track, identify, maintain custody, and — if you choose to — openly prosecute targets with a much lighter human load.” 

Rebesco sees the future fight as “increasingly dispersed, increasingly autonomous, increasingly USV [uncrewed surface vessel]-heavy.” 

“If you can see first and shoot first, you’re in a really good spot, and if you can’t, you’re in a really bad spot.” 

Striveworks Chariot software “processes all that sensor data coming through,” Rebesco said, noting that Chariot, “is the workhorse that’s underneath this.” 

“Chariot integrates easily with the Navy’s existing infrastructure. By delivering processed insights instead of raw data, Striveworks’ software reduces bandwidth demands while giving operators faster, clearer information,” the company said.  

Striveworks worked with the Naval Sea Systems Command for its demonstration, with its software being platform-agnostic for USVs, noting that “as the Navy buys those boats, we work with the Navy on what they’ve got,” Rebesco told Seapower. 

“The critical challenge facing our military today is keeping AI models working once they’re deployed, especially at scale,” Rebesco said in the release. “Now, we’ve proven that continuity can happen as part of daily operations, instead of the delayed cycles that can represent risk to our men and women in uniform. 

“In the Navy demonstration, Striveworks approached the problem differently. Its Chariot platform incorporates new operational data continuously, applies updates regularly, and delivers retrained models at the speed of need, measured in hours,” the release said. “Striveworks demonstrated rapid model transfer between different vessels and sensors across various sea states. Chariot provided rapid high quality target identification, tracking, and monocular passive ranging complete with full data lineage and no model or data IP restrictions. This bolsters the AI-assisted Commander’s confidence, assuring the advantage to stay aligned with changing conditions rather than fall victim to them.”   

With another Department of Defense customer, Striveworks “saw an over 95% reduction in operational work, like in human labor involved in maintain and do a kinetic action,” Rebesco said. 

“We usually targeted having a fully updated model fully validated, fully tested, fully evaluated — you know exactly what the performance is — within 24 hours. Most of the time we’re well below that. We are constantly taking the operational data that’s coming in. … We train the models from there.” 

Striveworks’ software has been used for defense missions in Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, and in the Russia-Ukraine War. 

From Cellula Robotics US Inc. 

Long-term agreement combines proven COTS platforms, trusted autonomy, and enduring support for US defense customers 

HOUSTON, Texas – 19 May 2026— Cellula Robotics US Inc. and Metron, Inc. have signed a 10-year agreement to deliver a combined solution for the United States defense market, bringing together Cellula’s commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) long-endurance autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) platforms with Metron’s best-in-class adaptive  mission autonomy and decades of proven undersea warfare and maritime domain expertise.  

Building on their successful collaboration to date, including work supporting the Defense Innovation Unit’s CAMP project, the agreement establishes a long-term framework focused on faster fielding, strong operational performance, and confidence in long-term support. 

The agreement reflects growing demand in the US defense market for solutions that can move rapidly from program need to operational deployment, quickly scale, and deliver the autonomy, endurance, reliability, and payload modularity necessary to be operationally relevant.  

By combining Cellula’s proven vehicle platforms with Metron’s mission-tailored autonomy, integration pathways, and decision superiority ecosystem, the team offers a mission-ready capability designed to meet evolving defense requirements in demanding underwater environments. 

“We’ve worked closely with Metron over the last three years, and this agreement builds on that successful relationship,” said Neil Manning, CEO of Cellula Robotics. “It gives customers greater confidence in supply, long-term support, and operational performance by bringing together complementary strengths in a solution designed to be fielded faster and aligned closely with mission needs.” 

The agreement also strengthens Cellula’s position in the US defense market through its growing US team and long-term collaboration with an established American partner. Metron’s four decades of experience and strong relationships across the US defense ecosystem provide valuable alignment with customer requirements, mission priorities, operator needs, and program expectations. The partnership is complementary to Cellula’s US and global network of marine focused technology solution providers.  

The collaboration is designed around a modular, open-architecture approach that supports continued integration of third-party sensors, payloads, and mission systems, helping ensure the solution remains adaptable as technologies evolve and customer requirements change. 

“Cellula brings a proven, flexible COTS platform approach to the partnership. That is important for defense customers looking for capability that can be adapted, integrated, and fielded quickly with confidence,” said Van Gurley, President and CEO of Metron, Inc. “Together, we are combining our autonomy, mission planning, and novel payload options with Cellula’s long-endurance AUV platforms in a way that delivers the next-generation autonomous undersea system the US Navy has been pursuing for over a decade.”

Rich Murphy Retires After Distinguished Career; Mark Matta Sr. Named Vice President and General Manager 

From Bollinger Shipyards 

HOUMA, La. – (May 20, 2026) – Bollinger Shipyards (“Bollinger”), a leading designer and builder of high-performance military and commercial vessels, today announced the retirement of Rich Murphy as Vice President and General Manager of Bollinger Houma Shipyards and the appointment of Mark Matta Sr. as his successor, effective this week. 

Houma Shipyards is one of Bollinger’s flagship facilities, with active work across the Navy’s TATS and LSM programs, the National Science Foundation’s RCRV program, and the Coast Guard’s ASC program. 

Murphy joined Bollinger in July 2013 following a 30-year career in the United States Coast Guard, where he retired at the rank of Captain. He held progressively senior roles inside the company, including Senior Manager, Program Manager, and Senior Program Manager, before being named Vice President and General Manager. Over his more than a decade with Boliinger, his leadership was instrumental in helping guide the company through a period of significant program growth and customer expansion across Coast Guard, Navy, and federal research portfolios. 

“Rich has been an invaluable part of the Bollinger family,” said Ben Bordelon, President and CEO of Bollinger Shipyards. “His contributions over the past decade have made a lasting impact on our operations, our people, and the customers we serve. We are deeply grateful for his service and wish him all the best in this well-earned retirement.” 

Matta most recently served as Director of the ASC Program at Bollinger and previously as Director of Programs, with responsibility for the MCM USV and FRC programs. He joined Bollinger after 28 years in the United States Coast Guard, where he retired at the rank of Commander. In his new role, he will lead strategic and operational direction across the Houma portfolio. 

“I am grateful for the confidence Ben and the Bollinger leadership have placed in me, and for everything I have learned working alongside Rich,” said Matta. “Houma’s workforce and its programs are central to Bollinger’s mission. I look forward to building on what Rich and his team have established and delivering for our customers in the years ahead.” 

“Mark’s experience inside Bollinger, his program track record, and his operational background make him exceptionally well suited to lead Houma,” Bordelon added. “We are confident he will continue the success this team has built.” 

Both Murphy and Matta retired from the United States Coast Guard before joining Bollinger, reflecting the company’s longstanding partnership with the service and the depth of operational experience embedded across Bollinger’s leadership. 

From The Undersea Technology Innovation Consortium, May 19, 2026  

MIDDLETOWN, R.I. – The Undersea Technology Innovation Consortium (UTIC) has awarded more than $100,000 in scholarship funding this year to 23 graduate and undergraduate students pursuing STEM-related degrees with a focus or interest in ocean, marine, and undersea technology fields. 

“UTIC is proud to support these outstanding students as they prepare to become the next generation of undersea tech professionals,” said Molly Donohue Magee, CEO of UTIC. “As undersea systems become increasingly advanced and autonomy becomes more important, developing a strong pipeline of talent with expertise in engineering, robotics, sensing, materials, and intelligent systems is critical. These students represent the future leaders who will ensure the United States’ role as a global leader in undersea technology.” 

This year’s scholarship recipients represent 15 universities and colleges across 11 states and include 12 graduate students and 11 undergraduate students. They are pursuing degrees in disciplines including ocean engineering, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, robotics, computer science, materials science, physics, and environmental science. 

Several scholarship recipients have already gained hands-on experience through internships and research opportunities with UTIC member companies and partners, including the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, Naval Surface Warfare Center, SAIC, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Raytheon, General Dynamics Electric Boat, General Dynamics Mission Systems, and BAE Systems. 

UTIC launched its scholarship program in 2023 as part of its broader mission to advance workforce development, education, and innovation across the undersea tech ecosystem.