Division Director’s Corner

Photo by OPNAV N97

Rear Adm. Joseph E. Tofalo, USN Director, Undersea Warfare Division

Undersea Warriors,

I have been your Director of Undersea Warfare for just under six months now and can tell you that I am excited more than ever at the future of our Submarine Force. Admiral Connor has laid out his strategy to maintain undersea dominance and I am working closely with him to outline the resources we will need to execute that strategy.

In the previous issue, I outlined my top three priorities as director: • We absolutelymust have an uninterrupted, survivable nuclear deterrent. This is the Navy’s number one priority. You hear the CNO, Admiral Greenert, say that all the time. The President himself has said that, as long as there are nuclear weapons, the United States will maintain a safe, secure, and effective nuclear deterrent. • Our second priority is the Virginia-class itself at a build rate of two per year. The “…maintaining

President’s Defense Strategic Guidance says that we must maintain the undersea undersea domicapability to ensure access to anti-access/area denial environments. To do that, we must have the force structure that gets us inside where we need to be. • Our number three priority is to deliver the payload capacity and the payloads to address future global security challeges. The Virginia Payload Module is obviously

nance is very dynamic— we’re either getting

the centerpiece of that. We’ve got to have it. better, or we’re Beyond my top three, I’m looking at ways we as a force can provide influence beyond the platform. This includes both unmanned undersea vehicles (UUVs) and weapons. We are counting on UUVs in the future to supplement our manned forces and extend our

getting worse, we’re never

reach. UUVs are an important part of a transition from a platform-centric to a domainstanding still.” centric undersea dominance approach. I am also excited about the opportunities with other payloads. There are numerous options on the table, from conventional prompt strike and missiles used in other parts of the Department of Defense, to new ways of delivering Special Operations Forces vehicles, lasers, cyber effects, and others. The challenge of maintaining undersea dominance is very dynamic – we’re either getting better, or we’re getting worse, we’re never standing still. As we navigate the fiscal shoals ahead, we will continue to find innovative ways to maintain our undersea advantage. Thank you for all you do. Keep charging ahead!

J. E. Tofalo