On Saturday, March 1, the United States Navy will showcase its new ‘Strike Group’ multi-scenario, mobile mixed-reality experience at the 2025 San Diego Festival of Science & Engineering. The Expo Day runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Petco Park.
This free event offers more than 100 exhibitors and provides hands-on learning and exploring activities, stage performances, and more as kids of all ages and their families can immerse themselves in all things science, technology, engineering, arts, and math.
Using cutting-edge, mixed-reality technology, the ‘Strike Group’ provides participants with a fully immersive, hands-on look into the technology and teamwork that are central to every role in the Navy, demonstrating the breadth and depth of Navy STEM careers.
“From the depths of the sea to the heights of the stars, America’s Navy is the most highly skilled, technologically advanced military force in the world,” said Rear Admiral James P. Waters, Commander, Navy Recruiting Command. “It is important for all Americans to understand that a STEM career in the Navy provides a life-changing experience filled with adventure, teamwork and support. The ‘Strike Group’ brings all these aspects to life in the most realistic ways possible.”
The ‘Strike Group’ Comprises three Distinctive, interactive Challenges and mixperiences:
- All Hands
Players will test their skills on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier in a five-person mixed-reality game. Participants will don a Meta Quest 3 headset and be transported out to the USS Gerald R. Ford, where they will team up to launch an F-35C Lightning II jet. Working together in different roles – from loading fuel to flying helicopters to piloting the aircraft itself – each player will be immersed in the experience of what it is like to serve aboard an aircraft carrier and how their efforts influence a Navy mission.
- Support
The Navy conducts humanitarian missions around the globe through a variety of ship platforms and communities. Participants will navigate an interactive map of the world with a range of Navy ships and vehicles to explore the breadth and depth of these operations at strategic geographic locations. Each vehicle will trigger an educational experience, not only about the mission, but also about the potential careers to help provide aid to communities worldwide.
- Fly
Players will experience Naval aviation like never before. This full-motion flight simulator will drop participants into the cockpit of an F-35C Lightning II, where they’ll launch from an aircraft carrier with their wingman on a training mission. With some up-front tutorials, users will learn to maneuver the aircraft prior to engaging in a mission to drop munitions on a practice target and then land safely back on the carrier.
Why it’s Called the ‘Strike Group’
The new “Strike Group” interactive experience is named after the Navy’s forward deployment formation, known as a Carrier Strike Group. Comprised of roughly 7,500 personnel, one aircraft carrier with an air wing of 65 to 70 aircraft, two guided missile cruisers, two anti-aircraft warships and 1-2 anti-submarine destroyers. Carrier Strike Groups epitomize the leading-edge technology and teamwork that are synonymous with Navy life. The Navy currently maintains 11 Carrier Strike Groups.
(Courtesy image)
