A new warship was christened at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi. Christening ceremonies are always about more than smashing a bottle of champagne—but the DDG 131 christening marks the start of a new era in U.S. shipbuilding. Those aren’t our words. That’s what the acting Undersecretary for the U.S. Navy said. 

In this episode of Mission Critical, we take you to Pascagoula for the christening of the future USS George M. Neal (DDG-131) at Ingalls Shipbuilding.

You'll hear from:
 ⚓ Navy leaders on why America's shipbuilding industry is critical to national security.
 ⚓ HII President & CEO Chris Kastner on how autonomous welding, distributed shipbuilding, and new production methods are changing how warships are built.
 ⚓ Shipbuilders whose work directly impacts sailors—including one mother whose daughter serves aboard a ship she helped build.
 ⚓ The family of Navy Cross recipient George Milton Neal, whose courage during the Korean War inspired the ship's name.

The USS George M. Neal is one of the first destroyers built as Ingalls implements major investments designed to increase production, reduce costs, and strengthen America's industrial base.

Watch the full story and let us know what you think in the comments.

What happens when championship off-road racing meets cutting-edge military technology? A whole lotta chaos! Controlled chaos, that is. 

In this episode of Mission Critical, Host Ryan Robertson gets an exclusive look at HII's Chaos RZR platform demonstrator—a heavily modified Polaris side-by-side designed to support today's special operations forces and tomorrow's autonomous battlefield.

Built with tactical mobility in mind, this isn't just another military vehicle. It integrates electronic warfare protection, satellite communications, GPS assurance technology, drone launch capability, advanced sensor packages, and a path toward full autonomy.

Ryan sits down with HII's Jason Sardella and Chaos Fab Shop & Motorsports co-owner AK Whatley to explore:

• Why special operators need a new generation of tactical vehicles
• How electronic warfare is reshaping ground combat
• The "CLOAK" system protecting operators from GPS interference
• Drone launch systems and advanced sensor integration
• Why autonomy could eventually outperform even elite off-road drivers
• How lessons from professional off-road racing are influencing military vehicle design

As the battlefield becomes increasingly connected and contested, mobility is no longer just about speed—it's about surviving electronic attack, maintaining communications, and giving operators the information they need before the enemy knows they're there.

Watch now and let us know in the comments:
Would you trust an autonomous vehicle on tomorrow's battlefield?

And if you want to put your off-road driving skills to the test with AK Whatley and his team at Chaos Fab Shop and Motorsports, go to chaosfabshop.com for more details!

The Pentagon wants $1.85 billion to explore building U.S. Navy vessels in foreign shipyards, specifically South Korea and Japan. Supporters say America's allies can help close critical shipbuilding gaps, but critics argue the move could undermine the U.S. industrial base, workforce development, supply chain security, and long-term naval readiness.

In this episode of Mission Critical, host Ryan Robertson sits down with Matt Paxton, President of the Shipbuilders Council of America, to discuss the growing debate over foreign-built U.S. warships.

Topics include:
 ⚓ Why Congress is moving to limit foreign-built Navy vessels
 ⚓ The challenges of military specifications, ITAR, and supply chain security
 ⚓ Whether South Korean and Japanese shipyards can meet U.S. Navy requirements
 ⚓ The rise of distributed shipbuilding across America
 ⚓ How automation and advanced manufacturing are transforming shipyards
 ⚓ The SHIPS Act, Maritime Action Plan, and the future of U.S. shipbuilding
 ⚓ Why industry leaders believe America can meet demand without outsourcing warship construction

Can America rebuild its maritime industrial base while competing with global shipbuilding giants? Or is overseas production a necessary step to grow the fleet?

Watch and decide for yourself.

HII may be America's largest military shipbuilder, but at Defense Tech Live 2026 the focus wasn't on ships—it was on the technologies that could shape the future battlefield.

In this episode of Mission Critical, Ryan Robertson goes behind the scenes at HII's Defense Tech Live event for an up-close look at unmanned systems, electronic warfare technologies, high-energy lasers, and other mission-enabling systems.

Ryan also speaks with Josh Peters, HII's Director of Energy Systems, to discuss why directed-energy weapons are finally approaching operational maturity, how open-architecture integration is accelerating innovation, and why future military capabilities must work across every domain.

FEATURED IN THIS EPISODE:

• Romulus 7 unmanned surface vessel (USV)
• High-energy laser weapons
• Counter-drone defense technology
• MOSA (Modular Open Systems Approach)
• Army directed-energy programs
• Future deterrence in the Indo-Pacific
• Defense Tech Live 2026

The future fight won't be won by a single platform. It will be won by connecting the right capabilities across the entire force.

Subscribe for more coverage of naval technology, unmanned systems, military innovation, shipbuilding, and national security.

Winning the next war will have less to do with which side has bigger ships and faster missiles, and more to do with how quickly military systems can connect, communicate, and operate together. 

In this episode of Mission Critical, host Ryan Robertson breaks down “integration” as a warfighting concept, and how it could become America’s next strategic advantage. The goal of integration is straightforward: allow warfighters in any domain to bring the might of the US armed forces to bear in an efficient, lethal, and cost-effective manner.  

You’ll hear insights from leaders in unmanned systems, shipbuilding, and new entrants into the defense manufacturing space, as we explore how platforms, domains, and manufacturing are converging to create a more connected and capable force. 

We cover:

• Unmanned autonomous systems
• Counter-drone and electronic warfare systems
• Unmanned surface vessels (USVs) and Unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs)
• Defense technology innovation
• Integration across domains

The fight to make the Strait of Hormuz safe for commercial shipping is a global economic crisis unfolding in real time.

In this episode of Mission Critical, host Ryan Robertson breaks down how the U.S. and its partners may reopen the Strait to shippers by using autonomous surface vessels and underwater drones to confront the challenge of sea mines.

Featuring expert insights from:

• Naval historian and shipping analyst Sal Mercogliano
• Former U.S. Navy officer and Hudson Institute senior fellow Bryan Clark
• Duane Fotheringham, President of Unmanned Systems at HII

You’ll learn:

✅ Why shipping companies are avoiding Hormuz
✅ How Iran uses sea denial tactics with drones and fast attack craft
✅ The growing role of autonomous “drone boats” as convoy bodyguards
✅ How REMUS underwater vehicles hunt naval mines
✅ Why unmanned systems may define the future of naval warfare

Technology is saving sailors from the dull, dirty, and dangerous work that autonomous unmanned platforms can do so well.

👍 Like, comment, and subscribe for more defense technology, naval strategy, and national security stories

China built more ships in the last year than the entire U.S. industrial base produced in decades — and U.S. shipbuilders are racing to close the gap.

In this episode of Mission Critical, host Ryan Robertson travels to the Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space Expo to examine the future of American naval power and a growing solution called Distributed Shipbuilding — a strategy designed to expand production beyond traditional shipyards and rebuild the U.S. maritime industrial base.

Major defense companies including HII, Trident Maritime Systems, and Fairbanks Morse Defense explain how spreading ship construction across the country could accelerate delivery of aircraft carriers, submarines, destroyers, and amphibious warships.

As China rapidly expands its naval fleet, U.S. industry leaders say solving workforce shortages, supply chain challenges, and production bottlenecks is now a national security priority.

In this episode:

• Why China’s shipbuilding capacity alarms U.S. defense planners
• What “Distributed Shipbuilding” actually means
• How modular construction could transform naval production
• Lessons from World War II industrial mobilization
• Why shipyards may become final assembly facilities
• The race to rebuild America’s maritime industrial base

Featuring interviews with:

• Kari Wilkinson, President, Newport News Shipbuilding
• Joe Mullen, CEO, Trident Maritime Systems
• George Whittier, CEO, Fairbanks Morse Defense

If you follow naval warfare, defense industry news, military technology, or geopolitics — this episode breaks down one of the most important industrial challenges facing the United States today.

Autonomous robots are coming to U.S. shipyards — and it could transform how the U.S. Navy builds warships.

In this episode of Mission Critical, we go inside the Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space 2026 exhibition to explore how artificial intelligence, autonomous robotics, and human ingenuity are reshaping American naval production.

Host Ryan Robertson breaks down the new HYPR (High Yield Production Robotics) partnership announced in National Harbor, MD, between HII, Path Robotics, and GrayMatter Robotics — an ambitious effort to bring physical AI into one of the most complex manufacturing environments on Earth: shipbuilding.

Featuring interviews with:

• Sean Cassady, Director of Operations & Technology Strategy at HII
• Ariyan Kabir, Co-Founder & CEO of GrayMatter Robotics

In this episode of Mission Critical, host Ryan Robertson breaks down the Pentagon’s push for MOSA, Modular Open Systems Approach to military architecture.

See how the sweeping mandate could transform the way America designs and builds warships, weapons, software, and AI systems. 

Plus:

⚓   Shipbuilding workforce updates

🚀  Precision Strike Missile combat debut

🇺🇲  USS Cole’s legacy of resilience

The U.S. Navy’s newest aircraft carrier, USS John F. Kennedy (CVN-79), completed sea trials in February. Now, we’re taking you behind the scenes with the team responsible for capturing it all.

In this episode of Mission Critical, host Ryan Robertson sits down with the storytellers from Newport News Shipbuilding who documented the Kennedy’s at-sea testing in the Atlantic.

From high-speed turns to the nonstop grind of chasing “evolutions” across an 1,100-foot warship, this is a rare look at what it takes to bring the sights and sounds of a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to the world.

You’ll hear firsthand:

• What sea trials are really like aboard a Ford-class carrier
• How crews capture footage in one of the most demanding environments on Earth
• The surprising realities of life aboard an aircraft carrier

The USS JFK is more than just a warship. It represents the work of thousands of shipbuilders and sailors—and the storytellers making sure their efforts are never forgotten.

Watch this episode on YouTube.