Command Profile Special Section: NAMDC

MSMF 2009 Volume: 2 Issue: 6 (November/December)

The Navy Air and Missile Defense Command (NAMDC) was established April 30, 2009, by the chief of naval operations to be a warfare center of excellence (WCOE) for integrated air and missile defense (IAMD) at Naval Support Facility Dahlgren, Va. IAMD is a core mission of the Navy and a key enabling capability provided to the joint force. With the proliferation of threats around the globe, our fleet remains in greater demand and more relevant than ever. Forward deployed, our fleet is providing assured access and credible deterrence and is well-postured to defend our homeland, regional allies, and our sea base. NAMDC was established to serve as the Navy’s lead organization for naval, joint and combined IAMD matters. NAMDC brings together the technology, concepts, programs and intellectual efforts for our air and ballistic missile defense (BMD) initiatives, and will provide IAMD operational mission support to the fleet.

NAMDC is an Echelon IV command and reports to commander, Third Fleet (C3F), and commander, Pacific Fleet (CPF). NAMDC’s status as a WCOE, and more important as the honest broker and advocate for the fleets, allows them to interact with commands and agencies at all echelons including other services, DoD agencies, industry and academia. The proximity of NAMDC to the Missile Defense Agency’s Aegis BMD Project Office, and the co-location with the Center for Surface Combat Systems, Joint Warfare Analysis Center and NSWC Dahlgren Division, will pay huge dividends in the coming years by allowing the missile defense professionals from all the organizations to work together in addressing the myriad challenges of this complex mission area.

By design, NAMDC is a lean and efficient organization. We are currently mustering a team of just over 30 military, government and contractor personnel, and expect to grow to roughly twice that size by the end of fiscal year 2010. Accordingly, the command’s priorities are focused for the first six to 12 months, and will grow with our manning over time. The staff is organized along the traditional staff N-code model, and their initial focus will be on seven functional areas with an incremental phase-in approach. These areas include:

• Assessing Maritime BMD at the fleet, strike group and unit level. Supporting existing organizations tasked with assessment and certification functions, NAMDC will develop standard IAMD readiness criteria to facilitate operational, cross-platform mission area assessment;

• Fostering high performance in IAMD operations at all echelons by advising the fleet and training authorities on the uniform best practices in training;

• Promoting rapid delivery of selected new IAMD technologies;

• Supporting fleets, resource sponsors, and system commands with the development and validation of IAMD requirements for joint and Navy processes;

• Leading Navy IAMD concept, doctrine and tactics development, and experimentation; and

• Advocating Navy positions and capabilities in joint IAMD forums.

NAMDC will facilitate integration of Navy IAMD capabilities into the joint force; enhance Navy’s capacity to understand and support operational requirements for joint planning and execution; provide mechanisms for holistic assessment of our progress in this complex mission area; and provide our leadership with feedback on gaps and seams to ensure our Navy is empowered with the organizational structure, processes and systems to consistently plan and execute operations. WCOEs, resource sponsors, program managers, labs, training organizations, and operational and tactical development commands will collaborate with NAMDC to collectively improve our IAMD capabilities. ♦

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