NAVAL STATION MAYPORT, Florida -- On October 15, 2024, Information Technicians First Class Justin Hightower, assigned to USS Wichita (LCS 13), was awarded the Navy Commendation Medal for correcting a class-wide configuration issue and providing documented steps to the network’s Program of Record (PoR) for implementation and dissemination across the Freedom-Class.
The award presentation took place onboard USS Wichita (LCS 13). The award was presented by Capt. Mark Haney, Commander, Littoral Combat Ship Squadron Two, who recognized Hightower, the leading IT and the Wichita team for correcting a class-wide configuration issue and providing documented steps to the network’s PoR for implementation and dissemination across the Freedom-Class. This is a vital accomplishment for the east coast LCS community!
"I am incredibly proud to have IT1 Hightower on our team and am ecstatic to celebrate his accomplishment in solving this long-standing problem for the Fleet. He never settled for the status quo, had a vision for what he wanted fixed, and persevered through the obstacles,” said Cmdr. Philip Galindo, USS Wichita’s Commanding Officer. “I am thankful for him leading his team and making us cyber ready. IT1 set the example for how we must face the challenges that await."
Keeping up with the rapid emerging and ever-changing cyber threats is a full time job for Information Technicians (ITs) onboard ships. ITs assigned to USS Wichita, a Freedom-Class Littoral Combat Ship are meeting this challenge head-on achieving new heights in Afloat Cyber Warfare. USS Wichita maintains a non-traditional network, known as the Total Ship Computing environment (TSCE), a more complex network than the more commonly known Consolidated Afloat Networks and Enterprise Services (CANES), which is found on the majority of the surface ships. TSCE technicians maintain direct communication with their PoR engineers and locally manage their Endpoint Security System (ESS), which is the ship’s primary network defense system, resulting in a better understanding of their network and a much more rapid response in defense of it.
Hightower has been leading significant cultural changes and helped achieve a metric for cyber-readiness that LCSRON TWO’s Cyber Officer, Lt. William VanVuren, explains is “A highly impressive feat that is nearly unachievable, given the ever-changing environment.”
When IT1 was asked how he and the team have managed to maintain such a high standard of cyber readiness, he humbly stated, "I'm grateful for the opportunity to work with such a dedicated team to address this issue. We all took ownership of our roles and our gear, recognizing that each piece of equipment is vital to the success of our mission. By working together, we were able to identify the problem, develop a solution, and ensure that everything was in top condition. While it's important to take pride in the gear we use, it's even more important to hold ourselves accountable for maintaining it. I'm proud of what we accomplished, but it wouldn't have been possible without the collective effort and commitment from everyone involved."
Additionally, IT1 and his team of four ITs have achieved and maintained class-leading, prestigious cyber metrics that have also placed USS WICHITA as the highest-graded Cyber-ready afloat unit in the Atlantic Fleet for six consecutive months.
The Littoral Combat Ship is a fast, agile, mission-focused platform designed to operate in near-shore environments, winning against 21st-century coastal threats. The LCS is capable of supporting forward presence, maritime security, sea control, and deterrence.
| Date Taken: | 12.10.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 12.18.2024 14:04 |
| Story ID: | 487820 |
| Location: | MAYPORT, FLORIDA, US |
| Web Views: | 150 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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