Sea Power - March 2014

SEA-AIR-SPACE PREVIEW With little more than a month to go, the 2014 Sea-Air-Space Exposition is shaping up to be the Navy League’s largest expo and symposium yet in terms of number of exhibitors and participation by sea service flag and general officers.

Sea-Air-Space has been named one of the “Top 50 Fastest Growing Events” — both in terms of attendance and number of exhibiting companies — by Trade Show Executive magazine, one of the show industry’s leading publications.

This year’s expo — with the theme “The Sea Services: Forward. Mobile. Ready.” — will take place April 7-9 at the Gaylord National Resort & Harbor, Md. The sea services will, indeed, be forward, mobile and ready at what is today the largest maritime show in North America. More than 70 Senior Executive Service, flag and general officers from the Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and Maritime Administration will take part in the professional development series of panel discussions, roundtable sessions, and presentations and briefings on the show floor, and 17 military commands will be among the 250 exhibitors.

Among the equipment coming to the show floor will be the Northrop Grumman X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System, the Boeing V- 22 fuselage and U.S. Special Operations Command’s “Iron Man” suit, the Tactical Assault Light Operator’s Suit being developed with several corporations, government agencies and laboratories.

Back by popular demand will be the award-winning culinary specialists from Naval Supply Systems Command who, like last year, will entertain expo attendees with cooking and carving demonstrations and tasty samples.

Professional Development

The Service Chiefs’ Update will kick off the professional
development series at 9 a.m. April 7, featuring ADM Jona-
than W. Greenert, chief of naval operations; Gen James F.
Amos, Marine Corps commandant; ADM Robert J. Papp
Jr., Coast Guard commandant; and
Paul “Chip” Jaenichen Sr., acting
maritime administrator at the
Department of Transportation’s
Maritime Administration.

The first day also will see sea serv-
ice officers participating in round-
table sessions on “Naval Energy,”
“Operating Forward: Partners in
Global Presence,” “The Challenge of
2020: Preparing for an Uncertain
Security,” “U.S. Opportunities for
Arctic Council Chairmanship” and
“Rebalance to the Pacific.”
The Small Business forum will
kick off the second day of the show at
8 a.m., followed by that morning’s
panel discussion “Innovation and
Supporting the Warfighter,” featuring
Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard
flag officers. Guest speaker for the
luncheon that day is ADM William E.

Gortney, commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command. The Navy CIO roundtable also will take place in the morning, followed by sessions on “Peace & Prosperity in the Maritime Domain,” “Rebalancing the Navy-Marine Corps Team for the 21st Century Pacific” and “Countering Emerging Threats in the Western Hemisphere.” The Sea-Air-Space reception and banquet will cap off the night, with Greenert taking the stage as keynote speaker.

Once again this year, the Congressional Breakfast will start the third and last day of Sea-Air-Space on April 9, at 7: 45 a.m. This popular event brings together U.S. lawmakers, Capitol Hill staffers, sea service representatives and industry executives for a lively discussion about common issues of concern.

That morning’s panel will focus on the expeditionary future of the Marine Corps, followed by the Secretary of the Navy Luncheon. Roundtable sessions will include “Ready to Fight and Win Today,” “Marines in Africa and the Middle East — Crisis and Opportunity” and “Information Dominance, Security and the Sea Services.” Sea-Air-Space continues to grow every year. The Navy League is proud to be able to support the sea services at “their show.” For registration information, go to www. seaairspace.org ■

Presence, Mobility, Readiness
Focus of Sea-Air-Space 2014

By AMY L. WITTMAN, Editor in Chief WWW.SEAPOWERMAGAZINE.ORG 46 SEAPOWER / MARCH 2014

Chief of Naval Operations ADM Jonathan W. Greenert speaks during the 2013 Sea-Air-Space Exposition at National Harbor, Md. He will be the keynote speaker at the 2014 Sea-Air-Space banquet April 8.