Photo By Chief Petty Officer Darren Moore | 250627-N-ME988-1239 GROTON, Conn. (June 27, 2025) Rear Adm. John Stafford, left,...... read more read more
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GROTON, Conn. – The Undersea Warfighting Development Center (UWDC) held a change of command ceremony Friday, June 27, aboard the historic ship USS Nautilus at the Submarine Force Museum in Groton, Connecticut.
Rear Adm. Michael Van Poots turned command of UWDC over to Rear Adm. John Stafford during the ceremony and Vice Adm. Robert Gaucher, commander, Naval Submarine Forces/Submarine Forces Atlantic, served as guest speaker and presiding officer at the event.
“This year UWDC celebrates 10 years since Vice Adm. [Jeffrey] Trussler first took command of UWDC; [Van Poots] you’ve followed in the footsteps of the flag officers before you, continuing the legacy and development of UWDC into the center of excellence it is today,” Gaucher said. “Undersea Warfighting Development Center has supported our nation, our Navy, and our submarine force and I commend your commitment.”
During the ceremony, Van Poots, a Sparta, New Jersey native and 1995 graduate of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, thanked his staff for “an experience of a lifetime.”
“I am routinely impressed by your forward-thinking and innovative accomplishments toward undersea dominance,” Van Poots said. “We can all proudly say our boats are the most advanced and capable warfighting submarines in the world, a fact that is visible at every level of our submarine operations.”
During Van Poots’ time in command, he led UWDC in many key achievements, including spearheading the Black Widow exercise series which enhanced fleet-wide readiness against high-end submarines;
developing and testing cross-domain communications, leading the Undersea Enterprise’s Electronic Warfare campaign evaluating submarine susceptibility to aircraft radar detection, improving force survivability; and developing new analysis tools using the Center for Naval Analysis and network tools, proving quantitative metrics for undersea battle problems and enhancing crew feedback.
Following his tour as the commander of UWDC, Van Poots will serve as Deputy Commander, Naval Submarine Forces/Submarine Forces Atlantic, in Norfolk, Virginia.
“John, welcome back to the Submarine Capital of the World,” Van Poots said. “I trust you will find this job as rewarding as I have, and I am excited to see what you and the staff will accomplish together.”
Stafford, a native of Staten Island, New York, and a 1997 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, arrived at UWDC after serving as chief of staff,
Submarine Forces Atlantic. He previously served as Commander, Submarine Squadron 4 in Groton, as well as commanding officer of the Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS Cheyenne (SSN 773). His previous submarine tours include USS Dallas (SSN 700), USS Topeka (SSN 754), and USS Nebraska (SSN 739).
“I am proud to take command of such a committed and hardworking team,” Stafford said. “UWDC is about delivering on the premise that we service members of the submarine force will continuously deliver
the most lethal and dangerous undersea force in the world.”
UWDC was established Sept. 1, 2015, to enhance undersea warfighting capabilities and readiness across the theater, operational and tactical levels of war. Committed to being innovative, adaptive, and responsive, UWDC tackles the broad and complex undersea warfare challenges of both today and tomorrow. Its mission is to lead undersea superiority, enabling decisive effects from or in the undersea domain when and where the operational commander directs.
| Date Taken: | 06.27.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 06.27.2025 16:55 |
| Story ID: | 501769 |
| Location: | GROTON, CONNECTICUT, US |
| Hometown: | SPARTA, NEW JERSEY, US |
| Hometown: | STATEN ISLAND, NEW YORK, US |
| Web Views: | 386 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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