Admiral Mike Mullen, USN& Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

As the speed of naval warfare accelerates, as our

decision cycles shrink from days and hours to

milliseconds, the AEGIS Weapon System has de-

fined the Surface Warriors of our age and has

made them even stronger contributors to our

joint force.

For nearly half a century now, thousands of ded-

icated men and women both military and civilian

have devoted themselves to making AEGIS the

sword and the shield that enable our sailors to

command the sea, control the littorals, project

power ashore, and safeguard our troops and allies

from growing threats like ballistic missiles—as

was demonstrated by the sharpshooters of USS

LAKE ERIE last June, when they marked yet an-

other AEGIS milestone by becoming the first ship

to intercept a missile in the terminal stage of flight.

Just a couple of years ago I had the pleasure of

participating in the ‘‘Pull the Plug’’ ceremony for

the 100th AEGIS system. In that same ceremony

I also had the honor of announcing the naming

of the USS WAYNE E. MEYER (DDG 108). It

was a fitting tribute to a man who led the creation

of our AEGIS fleet, who delivered engineering

excellence to the US Navy, who instilled opera-

tional excellence in the fleet, and who committed

to realizing the full potential of this fantastic sys-

tem; constantly improving it along the way.

Indeed, our Nation owes Wayne E. Meyer, and

all those who worked so hard to make AEGIS a

reality, a great debt of gratitude.

In fact, it was RADM Meyer’s belief in rigorous

systems engineering that made AEGIS possible.

Those same principles of ‘‘build a little, test a

little, learn a lot’’ have enabled AEGIS to evolve

into what it is today, and continues to lead us

forward, not just in AEGIS, but in all aspects of

engineering design in our Armed Forces as we

make our way towards the next quantum leap

forward.

The AEGIS Weapon System is one with which I

am intimately familiar—having commanded the

guided missile cruiser USS YORKTOWN (CG

48) nearly 15 years ago. The world has changed

much since then, but AEGIS is truly a system

that has adapted to change and continues to de-

liver today as it has done time and again.

& 2009, American Society of Naval Engineers

DOI: 10.1111/j.1559-3584.2009.00199.x

The Story of AEGIS &11

We see it today, as AEGIS is at the heart of a

surface fleet that is globally deployed and en-

gaged in operations ranging from frustrating the

efforts of pirates off the coast of Somalia to pro-

tecting the sea lanes in the Pacific, to supporting

the delivery of humanitarian relief efforts

throughout South America.

The range of missions where you find AEGIS

today was as unimagined at its inception as it is

diverse, and serves as a testament to how ad-

vanced and revolutionary the system really is—

truly a formidable feat of engineering and inno-

vation.

In today’s fight, AEGIS is front and center and

nothing else at sea even comes close. AEGIS

ships today truly represent naval excellence,

strength, and freedom. They are the foundations

for our global fleet, our Navy, and our maritime

nation.

But it is not just the US Navy; other navies are

AEGIS navies too. AEGIS is sailing strong

aboard Japan’s KONGO class of destroyers, as

well as Spain’s F100, and Norway’s F310 frig-

ates, and it will not be long before AEGIS is put

to sea aboard new destroyers in Australia and

the Republic of Korea.

I am convinced that as AEGIS sails ahead into

the future—as the engineers and operators who

work every day to make AEGIS even better em-

brace open architecture—we will continue to

add new chapters to this great legacy of techno-

logical excellence.

Thanks to RADM Meyer and the AEGIS team,

our Nation can send our sons and daughters in

harm’s way—confident that they have the best

equipment this great country can produce, and

the best training we can provide.

AuthorBiographyAdmiral Mullen, USN, was sworn in as the 17th

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on October

1, 2007. He serves as the principal military ad-

visor to the president, the Secretary of Defense,

the National Security Council, and the Home-

land Security Council.

A native of Los Angeles, he graduated from the

US Naval Academy in 1968. He commanded

three ships: the gasoline tanker USS NOXUBEE

(AOG 56), the guided missile destroyer USS

GOLDSBOROUGH (DDG 20), and the guided

missile cruiser USS YORKTOWN (CG 48).

As a flag officer, Mullen commanded Cruiser–

Destroyer Group 2, the George Washington

Battle Group, and the US 2nd Fleet/NATO

Striking Fleet Atlantic.

Ashore he has served in leadership positions at

the Naval Academy, in the Navy’s Bureau of

Personnel, in the Office of the Secretary of De-

fense, and on the Navy Staff. He was the 32nd

Vice Chief of Naval Operations from August

2003 to October 2004.

His last operational assignment was as com-

mander, NATO Joint Force Command Naples/

Commander, US Naval Forces Europe. Mullen is

a graduate of the Advanced Management Pro-

gram at the Harvard Business School and earned

a Master of Science degree in Operations Re-

search from the Naval Postgraduate School.

Before becoming chairman, Mullen served as the

28th Chief of Naval Operations.

NAVAL ENGINEERS JOURNAL 200912 &The Story of AEGIS