Photo By Michael Smith | Justin Vidal-Phillips, right, acting Spectrum Warfare Department Director of Business...... read more read more
In a small, unassuming lab at Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division, two engineers set out to sharpen their skills through focused, hands-on training during the Point Mugu RF Boot Camp. Their effort was part of a deliberate two-week investment in the technical edge behind fleet support.
The fourth Point Mugu RF Boot Camp cohort completed the course on April 19. The course, hosted by the Spectrum Warfare Department, is a condensed version of a month-long program initially developed by the Weapons and Energetics Department at China Lake. It delivers practical training in radio frequency concepts and measurement tailored to the operational needs of the division and the fleet.
Participants are nominated by their supervisors and selected based on their alignment with RF-related work, but the course is limited to four students per cohort due to available lab equipment. That small class size allows for one-on-one guidance and deeper engagement during the lab exercises.
“Most of our engineers come in with strong theoretical backgrounds, but that’s not enough,” said Alberto Rodriguez, the course’s lead instructor and an electrical engineer with the Spectrum Warfare Department. “This training helps them apply theory in a way that reflects the real behavior of RF systems in the lab. That’s essential when your work directly supports the fleet.”
The curriculum includes 14 labs split across two parts, covering everything from oscilloscope fundamentals to signal distortion, modulation, and RF front-end systems. Instructors structure the labs to build confidence and independence in a real-world lab environment. Students typically complete two to three exercises per day.
Michael Gibson, a computer engineer, said the course helped him close the gap between the data he sees and the systems he supports.
“I’ve worked with a lot of RF signals in code, but I didn’t always know what they physically meant,” Gibson said. “Now, after working with the equipment and seeing how the signals behave, it actually clicks.”
For David Catapang, who works on the F-35 program, the course provided more than just a technical tune-up. It offered context.
“Having that hands-on experience with signal generation and analysis makes a big difference,” Catapang said. “It’s clearer how the components we test are going to behave in the field, especially in systems as complex as what we support on the F-35.”
The Point Mugu RF Boot Camp is one of several Spectrum Warfare training efforts focused on closing skills gaps and enhancing lab readiness. Participant feedback has been positive, and RF Boot Camp organizers plan to work with graduates' supervisors to evaluate how the training translates into improved performance over time.
Justin Vidal-Phillips, acting Spectrum Warfare Department director of business operations, said the course is already showing its value.
“This is the kind of foundational knowledge that supports everything from sensor integration to test execution,” he said. “You can see the improvement by the end of the course. Not just in what they know, but how they approach the problem.”
Rodriguez emphasized that cross-disciplinary exposure also benefits the team in the learning process.
“These students came in with software and computer engineering backgrounds and were working directly with RF hardware, filters, amplifiers, mixers and antennas,” he said. “Seeing them connect those dots and communicate across specialties is exactly what this training is meant to do.”
As the Navy continues to modernize and field advanced systems, Rodriguez said the goal remains the same: practical skill applied with purpose.
“If you can take what you’ve learned here and use it to make smarter, faster decisions in the lab, that’s a win for us and it’s a win for the warfighter,” he said.
| Date Taken: | 04.17.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 04.28.2025 14:59 |
| Story ID: | 496357 |
| Location: | POINT MUGU NAWC, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 37 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Point Mugu RF Boot Camp sharpens engineering skills to support fleet readiness, by Michael Smith, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
