Naval Surface Warfare Center, Philadelphia Division (NSWCPD), is placing Sailors at the heart of efforts to refine the Advanced Weapons Elevators (AWE) aboard the USS John F. Kennedy (CVN 79). During hands-on training sessions, Kennedy crew members tested the elevators under real-world stress, offering direct feedback that influences the system's design, operation, and training to enhance performance at sea. Crew from the pre-commissioning Kennedy teamed up with NSWCPD engineers and MITRE Corporation experts for sessions in the summer of 2025 at the Land-Based Engineering Test Site (LBETS). MITRE is a non-profit organization that manages federally funded research centers for U.S. government sponsors, focusing on systems engineering and human factors. The team used augmented reality to place new and experienced Sailors in various scenarios, forming a "think tank" to identify wants, needs, and issues for improving the elevator system and developing better training.
"Sailors are the warfighters, and their feedback is critical," said Michael Mahoney II, an AWE mechanical engineer and AWEGOV 2.0 programmatic lead at NSWCPD. "The goal was to get unfiltered comments and have them evaluated." The sessions allowed MITRE to conduct interviews while Sailors operated the elevators in simulated shipboard conditions—from routine tasks to high-stress emergencies. Advanced virtual reality immersed Sailors in dark, noisy, chaotic environments that mimic battle conditions. MITRE experts monitored reaction times during normal use and increased stress levels to observe how performance changed. "We used a VR system to simulate a dark, noisy space. MITRE made it as realistic and hectic as they could," Mahoney said.
This direct input shows how Sailors interact with the AWE, identifying design flaws in controls, procedures, and overall usability before the ship deploys. "The first line of communication is always the Sailors using it," said NSWCPD LBETS Lead Engineer Christopher Korenak. "We want them to tell us what's working and what could be better so we can continually improve controls and make the interface more intuitive." Senior Chief Aviation Ordnanceman Justin Wooden, Kennedy's G-4 Division Officer, who joined the training, highlighted the gap between plans and reality. "The engineering team...lacks the bigger picture that can only be learned from experience," Wooden said. "What is written down as a procedure often does not mirror the reality or hurdles faced by the Sailor in their day-to-day operation."
The AWE moves up to 22,500 pounds of weapons from magazines to the flight deck using electromagnetic linear synchronous motors—50 percent faster than older cable systems. This boosts the carrier's sortie generation rate (SGR) in arming aircraft during intense missions. But the system's ties to other ship parts demand careful changes to avoid ripple effects.
"Generally speaking, the biggest challenge is ensuring we cover all aspects. This is system-wide engineering," Mahoney explained. NSWCPD collects Sailor feedback, tests impacts across the ship, and gets MITRE approval before updates. These refinements feed into ongoing versions like AWEGOV 2.0, with 3.0 in planning, as well as tailored training courses.
"This partnership exemplifies the core mission of the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Philadelphia Division—delivering innovative engineering solutions that directly support our fleet's readiness and lethality," said NSWCPD Technical Director Nigel C. Thijs, SES. "By placing Sailors at the center of our design process and leveraging cutting-edge simulation technologies, our team is ensuring that advanced systems like the Kennedy's weapons elevators are not just technologically superior but operationally effective."
In anticipation of USS Kennedy’s sea trials and March 2027 delivery, these Sailor-led tweaks address past delays. Lessons will aid future Ford-class ships, such as USS Enterprise (CVN 80) and USS Doris Miller (CVN 81), making AWE safer and more reliable from day one.
NSWCPD employs approximately 2,700 civilian engineers, scientists, technicians, and support personnel. The NSWCPD team conducts research and development, test and evaluation, acquisition support, and in-service and logistics engineering for non-nuclear machinery, ship machinery systems, and related equipment and materials for Navy surface ships and submarines. NSWCPD is also the lead organization responsible for providing cybersecurity for all ship systems.