NUWC Division Newport-Sponsored Robotics Team Finishes Among Top Alliances at World Competition

Team 78 AIR STRIKE, a Rhode Island-based FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) high school robotics team, sponsored by the Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) Division Newport, concluded its 2025 competition season with distinction, reaching the playoffs and finishing among the top 16 alliances in the world in the Daly Division at the 2025 FIRST Robotics World Championship held in Houston, Texas, April 16-19.

The team’s robot represented the most advanced engineering achievement in team history, according to Division Newport team mentors. It featured a continuously rigged elevator, a high-speed tuned intake and gripper system, and the most refined autonomous routines ever implemented by AIR STRIKE, making it a model of both mechanical excellence and software sophistication. The team shaved seconds off its autonomous scoring cycles and deployed vision-based alignment and automated scoring routines, empowering the drive team with a full arsenal of advanced control tools.

Prior to qualifying for the World Championship, AIR STRIKE competed in several competitions including a FRC New England regional event held March 13-15 at the University of Rhode Island. 

Founded in 1996, AIR STRIKE is organized through Aquidneck Island Robotics (AIR), a nonprofit, volunteer-run organization with more than 60 student members and 30 volunteer mentors. Aquidneck Island Robotics is open to all students in Rhode Island and Southeast Massachusetts from public, private and home schools.

Students on the AIR STRIKE team include Rhode Island students Laura Hoag of Rogers High School in Newport, Cameron Sousa of Middletown High School, Hailey Ferguson of Prout School in South Kingstown and Andrew Rodrigues of Portsmouth High School. These students collaborate with engineers and technicians in a facility provided by the team’s primary sponsor, NUWC Division Newport. The team operates with the intensity and coordination of a varsity sports program, offering a pathway for students to pursue technical college programs, engineering degrees, and skilled trades careers.

Along with DeSousa and Sieben, the team is supported by the following engineers and scientists from Division Newport: Mark Seidman, Sensors and Sonar Systems Department; Carly Winters, Combat Systems Department; USW Electromagnetic Systems Department employees, Aidan Lynch and Josh Wolf; Ranges, Engineering and Analysis Department employee, Richard Blight, Thomas Dolan, and Elizabeth Stevens; and Alex Cory, USW Weapons, Vehicles, and Defensive Systems Department. 

After its competitive season, AIR STRIKE will participate in two upcoming programs—BattleCry, being held in June 7-8 at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worcester, Massachusetts, and the Summer and Fall Research and Development Projects, which focus on continued technology development.