West Coverageold

SIGNAL's Online Show Daily
West 2007
Day 3

Quote of the Day:
“The second mouse gets the cheese. We want to be the second mouse and feed off of industry.”
        —Vice Adm. Mark J. Edwards, USN, deputy chief of naval operations for communications networks (N-6).

 

Vice Adm. Mark J. Edwards, USN, deputy chief of naval operations for communications networks (N-6), gives the Friday luncheon keynote address.

The third and final day of West 2007, the annual conference and exposition sponsored by AFCEA International and the U.S. Naval Institute, featured presentations ranging from how to defeat the Iraqi insurgency to the power of home-grown aircraft carrier videos.

The conference videophile was the day’s keynote speaker, Vice Adm. Mark J. Edwards, USN, deputy chief of naval operations for communications networks (N-6). Adm. Edwards took a broad view of the information technology revolution and described numerous opportunities to implement sweeping new capabilities throughout the Navy. Instead of merely building on existing technologies, the U.S. Navy would explore wholly new applications, Adm. Edwards indicated.

The final day of West 2006, the annual conference and exposition sponsored by AFCEA International and the U.S. Naval Institute, was a star-studded event marked by a panel comprising high-ranking flag officers and a pair of speeches by two of the Navy's highest-ranking admirals.

Special operations, technology challenges and personnel issues dominated the second day of West 2006, the annual conference and exposition sponsored by AFCEA International and the U.S. Naval Institute. The busiest day of the three-day program, titled "Services Roles and Structures: What's Right for the Way Ahead," featured two top-level speakers and three panel discussions.

West 2006, the annual conference and exposition sponsored by AFCEA International and the U.S. Naval Institute, began with a day of vital speeches and panels and ended with bagpipes and a videoteleconference with U.S. Marines in Iraq.

The U.S. military must ramp up force transformation without missing a beat in its campaign to win the war on terror, and succeeding in those two endeavors will require close coordination across many disciplines. A variety of issues ranging from advanced system acquisition to personnel training and education must be addressed in the midst of operational activities at home and abroad.

The new network-centric U.S. Navy, flush with advanced information technologies, can expect greater challenges as it is tasked with more diverse and widespread operations well into the 21st century. Both the Navy and the U.S. Marine Corps will be dealing with major operational issues involving a longer military reach amid greater geopolitical tension and more complex coalition operations. And, both services will be relying on as yet unfielded technologies to fulfill their missions.

The third and final day of West 2004, the annual conference and exposition sponsored by AFCEA International and the U.S. Naval Institute, had a distinctly nautical flavor as panels and speakers discussed some key issues facing the U.S. Navy.

West 2004, the annual conference and exposition sponsored by AFCEA International and the U.S. Naval Institute, began with a flourish as a saxophonist played the national anthem to inaugurate three days of conferences, speakers, panels and courses. Being held February 3-5 in San Diego, this year's event was titled succinctly, "Born Joint?"