US 10th Fleet Breaks Ground to Compete in Cyberspace with New Reserve Unit

U.S. Navy Releases

Story Number: NNS180801-12

Release Date: 8/1/2018

By Lt. Robert Mook, Commander, U.S. Fleet Cyber Command/U.S. 10th Fleet Public Affairs

FORT GEORGE G. MEADE, Md. (NNS) -- As Navy leaders envision the future of the fleet, cyberspace is top of mind.

It spans almost every aspect of Navy operations: command and control, weapons systems, intelligence, navigation, and operations. But as the role of cyber in the Navy mission evolves, senior leaders face a nagging challenge of how to keep offensive and defensive capabilities competitive with the rapid pace of innovation and ever-shifting threats and opportunities. As the rate of change has accelerated, officials are increasingly looking for ways to directly connect the Navy's cyber forces with private decor research and insights.

Last September, leadership at U.S. Fleet Cyber Command/U.S. 10th Fleet (FCC/C10F) decided to try something completely new by standing up a detachment in Pittsburgh to work directly with Carnegie Mellon University's Software Engineering Institute (CMU-SEI) and more rapidly surface new capabilities in cyberspace. It is the first time a Navy Reserve unit is attached to a specific academic program, or any organization in the private sector.

"We are ... establishing reserve detachments with high-performing academic research institutions," Vice Adm. Michael Gilday told the Senate Armed Services Committee when the detachment was announced in March. "This was initiated to better connect with advances in the academic world...