April 21, 2026
NATIONAL HARBOR, Md., (April 21, 2026) — At the U.S. Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space Exposition 2026 today, Kari Wilkinson, HII (NYSE: HII) executive vice president and president of Newport News Shipbuilding, highlighted the company’s commitment to strengthen and expand the U.S. maritime industrial base.
Wilkinson served as a panelist for a discussion on advancing strategic requirements with a resilient shipbuilding enterprise. The shipbuilding panel examined the broad initiatives shaping the maritime industrial base and how policy, budgeting, and long term planning can sustain the nation’s maritime dominance. Chris Miller, the U.S. Navy’s portfolio acquisition executive for maritime (PAE Maritime), moderated the discussion.
During the panel, Wilkinson highlighted how HII is growing and retaining the workforce needed to meet a generational demand for its products, is deploying advanced technology solutions, and is increasing the share of shipbuilding work it distributes to partner companies across the country through distributed shipbuilding.
“Distributed shipbuilding is the way to get more done more effectively and absolutely directly invest in our American manufacturing industrial base,” Wilkinson said. “The work becomes easier when there are many doing it. The things that many can learn how to do or already know how to do, those are the things that are ripe for moving out of the shipyard and into the hands of people well qualified. We have shipbuilders all over the nation and we need them, especially as it relates to the mission at hand.”
Throughout the Sea-Air-Space Expo 2026, HII is showcasing its role as America’s largest military shipbuilder and a global leader in autonomous maritime systems, along with expertise in mission-enabling technologies.
HII is a global, all-domain defense provider. HII's mission is to deliver the world's most powerful ships and all-domain solutions in service of the nation, creating the advantage for our customers to protect peace and freedom around the world.
As the nation's largest military shipbuilder, and with a more than 135-year history of advancing U.S. national security, HII delivers critical capabilities extending from ships to unmanned systems, cyber, ISR, AI/ML and synthetic training. Headquartered in Virginia, HII's workforce is 44,000 strong.
Sign Up for Updates
Enter your email to receive news updates and insights.
By subscribing you agree to our Privacy Policy and provide consent to receive updates from HII.