Tom Druggan

Rear Admiral Tom Druggan, U.S. Navy (Ret.) served in the U.S. Navy for over 33 years with significant experience serving onboard U.S. Navy Destroyers, supporting senior leaders at Navy Headquarters, and leading large technical and acquisition organizations to deliver critical Integrated Air & Missile Defense (IAMD) systems for the Department of Defense.   

Tom Druggan delivers deep expertise leading large technical and engineering teams in the design, development, integration, delivery, testing, and deployment of complex (IAMD) systems that are safe, effective, and reliable in arduous operational environments.  His experience also includes oversight of complex military construction projects, natural space environment engineering, and over $2 billion of Foreign Military Sales to international allies.   

His duties in Defense Technology & Acquisition include serving in the Missile Defense Agency as the Program Executive for Aegis BMD Sea-based Weapon Systems and as Commander, Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC).  As Commander, Aegis BMD and Program Executive for Sea-based Weapon Systems, he led an annual budget of nearly $2 billion, completed upgrades to Aegis BL 9C, fielded Sea-based Terminal defense with the SM-6 missile, contracted the MDA’s first multi-year procurement for the SM-3 Block IB missile, completed the cooperative development program of the SM-3 Block IIA, fielded space domain awareness capabilities in support of Space Force, demonstrated the SM-3 Block IIA’s capability against an ICBM-class target, advanced the Aegis Ashore Poland project, and initiated the Glide Phase Interceptor program for hypersonic missile defense.  As Commander, Naval Surface Warfare Center, led nearly 18,000 government scientists and engineers across eight commands, providing the Navy with critical research and development capabilities to meet national priorities. Additionally, he served as major program manager for Aegis Combat Systems in the Program Executive Office for Integrated Warfare Systems (PEO IWS 1.0). He also served as major program manager for In-Service Aegis Fleet Readiness (PEO IWS 1.0F) and previously as principal assistant program manager for In-Service Aircraft Carrier Combat System Integration, directly supporting Program Executive Office for Aircraft Carriers.  

Druggan’s Pentagon tours include Special Assistant to the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO), Special Assistant to the Vice Chief of Naval Operations (VCNO), the 2001 Navy Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR), and as a founding member of the Navy Operations Group Deep Blue. 

He also served on five destroyers, including Commanding Officer of USS O’KANE (DDG 77), conducting strike group operations, BMD taskings, and independent missions world-wide. 

Druggan earned a B.S. from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, an M.S. in Operations Research from the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) in Monterey, California, and an M.S. from the National Defense University’s Eisenhower School, formerly the Industrial College of the Armed Forces (ICAF), in Washington, D.C. 

Tom Druggan regularly speaks publicly on Missile Defense, hypersonic missile defense, fire control, Integrated Air & Missile Defense (IAMD), ship design and integration, STEM, digital engineering, artificial intelligence, and talent management.