This morning, retired Army General Lloyd Austin was confirmed as U.S. Secretary of Defense, and AUVSI offers him and his family our warm congratulations. 

Secretary Austin comes to the job with a very impressive resume, marked by several key accomplishments: he was the first Black commander of CENTCOM, the first Black Vice Chief of Staff for the Army, and is now the first Black Secretary of Defense. While serving in the Army, Sec. Austin led every Army formation from platoon-sized elements to a full combatant command, and as a brigadier general deployed to Iraq in 2003, he famously carried an M4 service rifle instead of the traditional general’s service weapon. 

A graduate of West Point Military Academy, Sec. Austin began his military career as a platoon leader for the 3rd Infantry Division in Germany. He would go on to deploy to Iraq in 2003 as the commanding general of the 10th Mountain Division, and became Chief of Staff for CENTCOM in 2005. As Commanding General of all U.S. forces within Iraq in 2010, Sec. Austin directly oversaw the troop drawdown of military troops and it was in this role that he likely interacted frequently with President Biden. During his service, Sec. Austin was awarded the Silver Star Medal for valor in combat, the Defense Distinguished Service Medal (with Three Oak Leaf Clusters), and the Legion of Merit. 

As Secretary of Defense, Sec. Austin will serve as the principal defense policy advisor to President Biden, and oversee all Department of Defense personnel, acquisition, research, and intelligence decisions. Notably for AUVSI, Sec. Austin will steer the Department as it continues to expand its command of unmanned systems, and we look forward to engaging with his staff on that mission. Unmanned systems across the air, ground, and maritime domains hold immeasurable promise towards improving our defense posture while moving soldiers out of danger. Innovations within the weapons and defensive technologies arenas are happening at record speed, and AUVSI along with our member companies stand ready to assist Sec. Austin as our nation’s military forces are further equipped with and strengthened by unmanned systems.