Congressional and Defense Leaders Visit ThayerMahan in Response to Growing Global Maritime Security Challenges

GROTON, Conn., April 16, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT‑03), Congressman Joe Courtney (CT‑02),  Minority Clerk House Defense Appropriation Subcommittee Jennifer Chartrand, and senior U.S. Navy officials visited ThayerMahan on Friday, April 10^th to engage with company leadership and engineers on the evolving maritime security environment, the accelerating demand for autonomous sensing systems, and Connecticut-based ThayerMahan's urgent and expanding role in addressing those needs and delivering critical national defense and homeland security capability.

The visit comes at a pivotal moment as global tensions continue to rise across multiple theaters, placing increasing strain on traditional naval forces and driving urgent demand for persistent, scalable maritime domain awareness. ThayerMahan's leadership briefed the delegation on how uncrewed autonomous sensing systems are being employed today as a tailored offset for the Navy, joint force, and for interagency operations - closing surveillance gaps while preserving high-value crewed assets for the most critical missions.

Congresswoman DeLauro, Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Committee, and Ms. Chartrand, Minority Clerk for the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, used the visit to gain a first-hand understanding of ThayerMahan's ability to deliver solutions to the U.S. Government.

"ThayerMahan is delivering unparalleled undersea defense technology right here in Connecticut," said Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro. "Congressman Courtney and I witnessed their advanced technology firsthand, including their newly launched system, SeaGuard, which provides protection for critical ports and infrastructure. Increasing our underwater capacity to improve our surveillance capabilities and better address threats is crucial to strengthening our national defense. ThayerMahan's innovative technology, driven by skilled Connecticut employees, reinforces our state as a leader in defense while strengthening our domestic industrial base. I will continue to fight for the resources Connecticut companies like ThayerMahan need to keep our national defense strong."

Congressman Courtney, Ranking Member of the House Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces, is a long-standing advocate for undersea capabilities and is well familiar with ThayerMahan's work supporting Navy and allied missions.

"The security environment has shifted dramatically, and undersea awareness has become more important than ever," said Congressman Joe Courtney. "What ThayerMahan is building here in Connecticut shows how innovative, unmanned systems can relieve pressure on our submarine force and provide commanders with persistent awareness in areas where it's increasingly difficult to operate. I have visited the ThayerMahan campus in past years and seen firsthand how these systems are being manufactured, operated, and delivered by a highly skilled local workforce. Friday's visit was different. It was a clear signal that ThayerMahan is ready now to deliver the capability our Naval, Coast Guard, and Border forces need at an incredible pace and impressive scale."

During the tour, visitors observed ThayerMahan's unmanned acoustic intelligence solutions, including Outpost® and SeaPicket®. They learned how ThayerMahan's TransparenSea® software enables on-platform edge processing and delivers mission-critical intelligence to operational commanders in near real time. They were briefed on SeaGuard™ non-kinetic defeat for UUV threats, and met with the engineers and operators responsible for the deployment, manufacturing, and 24/7 operations of ThayerMahan's acoustic intelligence solutions. The delegation discussed emerging undersea threats and the growing relevance of autonomous sensing in protecting the homeland, forward ports, undersea infrastructure, and strategic maritime chokepoints, particularly as naval forces face simultaneous demands across global theaters.

"Security challenges today are global, persistent, and increasingly complex," said Mike Connor, Chairman and CEO of ThayerMahan and former Commander of the U.S. Submarine Force. "We showed our visitors that Connecticut‑built systems, designed and operated by a highly skilled local workforce, are already helping the Navy and our partners maintain awareness and deterrence in contested maritime environments. Autonomous sensing is no longer experimental - it's operational, and the demand signal is growing rapidly."

The visit also underscored Connecticut's expanding role as a hub for advanced maritime manufacturing and undersea technology. ThayerMahan's production, integration, and operations are centered in Groton, southeastern Connecticut, the undersea capital of the world. The company continues to heavily invest in facilities, talent, and supply chain resilience to meet increasing US and international government demand. This locally anchored capability allows ThayerMahan to greatly strengthen the regional defense-industrial base.

In discussions with the delegation, ThayerMahan emphasized that their uncrewed acoustic surveillance systems offer a cost-effective, rapidly deployable complement to traditional exquisite naval assets, particularly at a time when shipbuilding timelines, workforce constraints, and global demand are placing unprecedented pressure on the fleet. By shifting routine surveillance and monitoring tasks to autonomous systems, the Navy and interagency partners can preserve critical crewed platforms for deterrence and conflict response.

The visit concluded with an exchange on future cooperation, emerging mission needs, and the importance of maintaining close alignment between Congress, the Department of Defense, and innovative U.S. technology providers as the security environment continues to evolve.

About ThayerMahan®  

ThayerMahan, Inc. is a maritime technology company specializing in unmanned acoustic intelligence, persistent undersea surveillance, and non-kinetic counter-UUV capabilities. The company provides its government and commercial customers with end-to-end autonomous system deployment, field operations, continuous data collection, and advanced analytics. Using state-of-the-art acoustic and electronic sensors integrated across a range of surface and subsurface platforms, ThayerMahan delivers tailored capabilities that support mission-critical defense, security, and infrastructure protection requirements. Headquartered in Groton, CT, ThayerMahan also maintains offices in Lowell, MA, and Arlington, VA. For more information, please visit www.thayermahan.com or contact the company at [email protected].

MEDIA CONTACT:

Dr. Kevin Lopes
VP, Marketing,
ThayerMahan, Inc.
M: +1 860 287 3563
E: [email protected]

SOURCE ThayerMahan, Inc.