Tag: change

GROTON, Connecticut – The Undersea Warfighting Development Center (UWDC) held a change of command ceremony March 25 at the Submarine Force Museum in Groton, Connecticut.

Rear Adm. Martin Muckian relieved Rear Adm. Rick Seif as the commander of UWDC, a command tasked with enhancing undersea warfighting capabilities and readiness across the theater, operational and tactical levels of war.

Rear Adm. Blake Converse, deputy commander of U.S. Pacific Fleet, served as presiding officer over the ceremony. Both Seif and Muckian previously worked as chief of staff under Converse when the he held the position of commander, U.S. Submarine Force, Pacific Fleet.

“Rick and Marty represent the finest the submarine force has in senior leadership,” Converse said. “These two leaders are … gifted in the fine arts of submarining.”

Converse credited Seif with overseeing 44 tactical development exercises, which he called “tenfold what we were doing” before UWDC’s establishment in 2015. He added that he has “great peace of mind” knowing someone as exceptional as Muckian will follow in Seif’s footsteps.

Seif, who departs to become commander, Submarine Group 7 in Yokosuka, Japan, said it had been a tremendous honor to work alongside the innovative warfighters of UWDC.

UWDC is tasked with enhancing undersea warfighting capabilities and readiness across the theater, operational and tactical levels of war. The nearly seven-year-old Groton-based center, with detachments in Norfolk and San Diego, develops doctrine for how multi-domain undersea warfare platforms integrate with each other, including the incorporation of artificial intelligence and machine learning.

In his approximately two years at UWDC, Seif oversaw the growth of the center’s Aggressor Squadron (AGGRON), popularly referred to as the Navy’s “Top Gun for Submariners,” referring to the fighter pilot training program made famous in a 1986 Hollywood blockbuster.

“The UWDC team is on the cutting edge of undersea warfare tactics and technology integration. They are true professionals, patriots, and warfighters, and it’s been a tremendous honor to work alongside them,” said Seif, a Pittsburgh native. “Our multi-domain undersea forces play an integral role in our nation’s joint warfighting readiness, and UWDC’s work is critical to our enduring asymmetric advantage in this critically important mission area.”

Seif, a 1992 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, has served aboard five nuclear-powered, Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarines, including as commanding officer of USS Buffalo (SSN 715) and USS Jacksonville (SSN 699).

“Whether working on artificial intelligence, unmanned systems, cross-domain command and control, tactics, or Arctic operations, every member of the UWDC has knocked it out of the park,” said Seif. “I will miss this team, but I know they will thrive and grow under the leadership of Marty Muckian. I look forward to watching UWDC’s continued success in the years ahead.”

Muckian, a native of Elmhurst, Illinois, takes command after most recently serving as chief of staff, Commander Submarine Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet. He is a 1995 graduate of the University of Illinois. He previously served as commander, Submarine Squadron 6, Norfolk, Va.

“I am honored to assume command of the Navy’s flagship for undersea tactical development, warfighting doctrine and integration,” said Muckian. “This team is at the forefront of ensuring the United States Navy remains the pre-eminent undersea warfighting force.”

The UWDC mission is to lead undersea superiority, enabling decisive effects from or in the undersea domain when and where the operational commander directs.