Intro to Combat Systems Engineering

Date/Time: 30 Oct 2024; 1000-1800. Participants have breaks and half-hour for lunch on their own.

Course Description:

• Introduction to Combat System Engineering introduces participants to the overarching DoD system engineering processes and uses history and heritage to advance student understanding.
• The course is structured to cover basic combat system engineering and fire control principles, from top-level requirements to allocated requirements to design requirements to combat system functions and associated design specifications, using historical examples from gunnery to air defense.
• This context-delivered approach improves the critical thinking required to engineer a complex system to meet always-advancing threat requirements.
• Participants have the opportunity to apply the skills they’ve learned in the classroom through independent exercises and group discussion.

Course Level: Introductory (100 Level) – Learner requires little to no previous knowledge of this topic area

PDHs: 8

Instructor: Rear Admiral Tom Druggan, U.S. Navy (Retired)

• Rear Admiral Tom Druggan, U.S. Navy (Ret.) served in the U.S. Navy for over 33 years with significant experience serving onboard five U.S. Navy destroyers, supporting the CNO and VCNO at Navy headquarters, and leading large technical and acquisition organizations to deliver critical integrated air & missile defense systems for DoD.
• Flag officer tours include Program Executive for Aegis BMD sea-based weapon systems in the Missile Defense Agency and as Commander of the Naval Surface Warfare Center, leading nearly 18,000 scientists and engineers.
• He also served as major program manager for the Aegis Combat System in the Program Executive Office for Integrated Warfare Systems. At sea, he earlier served on five destroyers and as the commanding officer of USS O’Kane (DDG 77), conducting strike group operations and independent missions worldwide.
• Rear Admiral Druggan currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Strategic Insight, Ltd.

Course Agenda