Evolving Warfare: Rise of the Drones!
The Patuxent Partnership Executive Director Bonnie Green; Ryan McBeth, OSINT Analyst; and USNR (ret) RADM Scott Sanders at TPP’s recent drone symposium held in California, MD.
On Thursday, June 18, 2026, an audience of more than 150 attended The Patuxent Partnership’s Drone Symposium: Evolving Warfare: Rise of the Drones! It took place at the University System of Maryland Southern Maryland SMART Building with dynamic panels and speakers, including VADM Jeffrey Hughes, former Deputy Chief of Staff Capability Development, Headquarters, Supreme Allied Command Transformation, and a host of subject matter experts.
Bonnie Green, TPP executive director, welcomed everyone and discussed the importance of the Drone Symposium amid evolving guidance, restrictions and fast-changing scenarios, and the importance of emerging drone and autonomous technologies to the US Navy, Joint and Coalition operations.
RADM Scott Sanders, USNR (ret), served as moderator and provided a perspective on the topics. RADM Sanders was also an important source of contact and topics in organizing the symposium.
The first speaker, VADM Jeffrey Hughes, USN (ret), did an excellent job covering the investment in cost-effective innovation and tailored offsets, including supply chain resilience, force resilience, maritime operations centers, decision advantage, and autonomous systems.
Panel “The Drone Hedge Strategy” with moderator Sevan Mehrabian, Larry Branthoover, MAJ Matt Friters, LT COL Gregg Skinner, and RADM Douglas W. Sasse III.
“The Drone Hedge Strategy” panel, moderated by Sevan Mehrabian, Deloitte- Robotics and Autonomous Systems (RAS) and National Security, discussed the implications of the Navy’s Hedge strategy, tailoring scalable, rapidly deployable, cost-effective autonomous systems for counter-drone options that deliver combat-ready solutions. Larry Branthoover, NAVAIR Chief Technology Office, PAE Munition/DPAE(A) MNC3 Science and Technology; Lt. Col. Matt Friters, US Army (ret), former Director of Technology Strategy & Transformation, US Space Force; LT. Colonel. Gregg Skinner, USMC (ret), PMA 263 PAE RAS; and RADM Douglas W. Sasse III, Director, Assessment Division, N81, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, were the expert panelists.
The Honorable Christopher C. Miller, Founder and CEO, FPF-Defense, a startup focused on countering drones, shared his perspective. A public servant for 34 years in the Army and national security apparatus of the United States, Chris’ service culminated as the Acting Secretary of Defense in 2020-21, overseeing the military’s $720 billion budget and leading its two million service members and 700K civilian employees.
The afternoon session opened with a UAS Show & Tell. This format gave each participating company 6 to 8 minutes for an overview of their drone operations. Presentations were made by local companies Platform Aerospace and OAG, along with LeVanta Tech and Chase Defense Partners.
Christopher C. Miller
Air Vice Marshall Chris Mullen, British Embassy Military Attache, gave us insight into the British cooperation with US Forces and their combined effort in Europe and Ukraine. Mullen then joined the next panel, Allies and Partnerships, moderated by Christopher C. Collins, Former Executive Director, Developmental Test, Evaluation & Assessments (OUSW(R&E)), Dr. Dale Quinn, Counselor, Defense Science and Technology at the Embassy of Australia in Washington, D.C., and VADM Jeffrey Hughes.
The focus then shifted to Counter UAS Technology, with panel moderator Robert “Juice” Newton, Newton Engineering, and panelists LTC Paul Lushenko, Ph.D, Chief Strategist, Joint Interagency Task Force, U.S. Army; CDR Josh Wofford, U.S. Coast Guard-Robotics and Autonomous Systems (RAS); Mark Butkiewicz, VP Applied Technology Sector, SURVICE Engineering, and Ryan McBeth, OSINT Analyst.
RADM Scott Sanders closed out the symposium, which was followed by a reception at AeroPark.
The symposium sponsors were KBR, MIL Corp., Platform Aerospace, and Chase Defense Partners.
About The Patuxent Partnership
The Patuxent Partnership is a nonprofit member organization that fosters collaboration between government, industry, and academia to advance education through STEM-based initiatives; to advance technology through speaker programs, forums, and networking; to advance science and technology transfer through the exchange of ideas, information, and data related to technologies; and to increase workforce development through an array of initiatives.
To learn more about The Patuxent Partnership and its programs, visit its Leader member page.
VADM Jeffrey Hughes
The audience with VADM Jeffrey Hughes, Bonnie Green, and RADM Scott Sanders.
Panel “Allies and Partnerships” with moderator Christopher C. Collins, right, Air Vice Marshall Chris Mullen (UK), Dr. Dale Quinn (Australia), and VADM Jeffrey Hughes.
Panel “Counter UAS Technology” with moderator Robert “Juice” Newton, right, and panelists LTC Paul Lushenko, Ph. D, CDR Josh Wofford, Mark Butkiewicz, and Ryan McBeth.
Exhibitor Chase Defense Partners.
