SUBGRU2 Celebrates its First Anniversary

Submarine Group 2 (SUBGRU 2) celebrated its first anniversary after reestablishment on Sept. 30, 2019.

SUBGRU 2 was reestablished a little more than a year after the reestablishment of U.S. 2nd Fleet in August 2018, and was aimed at enhancing the Navy’s capacity to command and control its undersea warfare (USW) forces in the Western Atlantic.
Rear Adm. Jim Waters, SUBGRU 2 commander and Ellington, Connecticut native, highlighted the importance of reestablishing the command.

“We are tasked with advancing the art of undersea warfare through the combined efforts of our air, surface, submarine, and other underwater capabilities and to provide exquisitely trained forces to ensure undersea dominance in the Atlantic,” Rear. Adm. Waters said. “I am honored to be a part of developing and leading this command into the future of integrated undersea warfare.”    

SUBGRU 2 serves as the Theater Undersea Warfare Commander (TUSWC) for 2nd Fleet and 4th Fleet in response to increasing near-peer competition in the Atlantic. SUBGRU 2 has the authority to command and control air, surface, and undersea forces to execute integrated multi-domain undersea operations in defense of the homeland. 

Rear Adm. (ret.) Ken Perry, the previous SUBGRU 2 commander charged with disestablishing the command in August 2014, expressed how different the mission of the command is today.

“Admiral Waters’ Submarine Group 2 is distinctly different from the Submarine Group 2 I commanded and my predecessors commanded in New London,” Rear. Adm. Perry said.  “Fundamentally, Group 2 was the immediate superior in command for all the east coast attack submarine squadrons; Squadron 6 in Norfolk, and Squadrons 12, 4, and 2 in New London.  Submarine Group 2 now is an operational commander as the TUSWC.  That role was previously held by Commander, Submarine Force Atlantic. Despite these differences, the enduring mission of SUBGRU 2 is unchanged.”

Capt. Doug Jordan, Chief of Staff of SUBGRU 2, and the first staff member since the reestablishment, describes how much he has seen the command grow in only a year and how much more is left to come.

“Having a Flag Officer led team dedicated to USW makes for stronger relationships with other commands, enhances the integrated planning processes and strengthens the commitment to increasing our capacity and capability” Capt. Jordan said. “As we build capacity, we are also exploring additional ways to increase cohesiveness among all USW commands, across the Navy, as one fighting force, progressing our advantage over our great power competitors.”

Rear Adm. Waters reflects that the command’s accomplishments over the last year, including successful execution of “Black Widow”, a major USW exercise focused on combining air, surface, and submarine forces into a lethal submarine hunting team, are only the beginning of what’s to come. 

“Exercise Black Widow gave our command an opportunity to showcase the importance of having a TUSWC to maintain shared awareness among multiple platforms all executing toward the same goal,” Rear Adm. Waters said.  “This allowed for our teams to establish trust, understand individual capabilities that strengthened the whole team, and build proficiency and cohesion between those teams and other commanders. Our job is to use our bird’s eye view of the operational picture to increase understanding at every level.  Exercise Black Widow gave us an opportunity to rehearse and refine that role.”

Rear Adm. Waters understands that there is a lot more work left to reach full operating capability, but believes in just one year, SUBGRU 2 is moving out “on plan.”

“Our exceptional team of USW professionals, combined with unrelenting support from senior leadership, are the foundation of our success,” Rear. Adm. Waters said.  “Without the support and guidance from my mentors, and the unmatched dedication of our team, we wouldn’t be where we are today. Going forward, we will remain flexible and adaptable while we live our motto, Præparavit Regnatura, to be “Ready to Dominate” throughout the undersea domain.”