Mr. Jason Durst is currently serving as the Acting Technical Director at Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) Division, Keyport.
Prior to this appointment, Jason served as the Acting Deputy Technical Director of NUWC Division, Keyport, leading the organization in the oversight of Research, Development, Test and Evaluation (RDT&E) for undersea warfare (USW) systems, torpedoes, unmanned undersea vehicles, and defensive weapons systems.
Prior to that Acting role Jason was the Principal Technical Manager and Unmanned and Theater Undersea Warfare Systems Department Head at NUWC Division, Keyport, earning the Senior Scientific and Technical Manager designation in January 2025. In this role, he was responsible for approximately 300 combined civilian and contractor personnel in the execution of various Engineering Agent assignments surrounding Unmanned Undersea, Maritime Surveillance, and Theater Command and Control Systems.
Arriving at NUWC Division, Keyport in 2010, Jason has served in a variety of technical and organizational leadership positions. Most notably, Jason was the Technical Project Manager for the Station’s Technology Insertion Hardware, Payload Handling System, and Special Operations Forces projects, executing an annual budget of over $100M. Jason was also the first Division Head of the Unmanned Undersea Systems Division, leading its creation in 2019, became the first permanent Deputy Department Head of the Unmanned and Theater Undersea Warfare Systems Department in 2021 and Acted as the Department Head of the Unmanned and Theater Undersea Warfare Systems Department from August 2023 to January 2025.
In 2008, Jason served at Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) where, as a Manufacturing and
Quality Engineer, he worked issues crossing the C-2, E-2C, and E-2D programs within PMA-231.
During his time at NAVAIR, Jason became the Product Build Integrated Product Team Lead for the E-
2D Advanced Hawkeye program and led a cross functional team of aerospace engineers and quality
specialists through the ACAT-1D program’s Low Rate Initial Production and Physical Configuration
Audit milestones. Jason began his Federal career in 2001 at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard. As an Industrial Engineer within the Production Resources and Facilities Engineering Department, Jason led and executed various facility projects, many of which were driven by the Shipyard’s work in the SSGN conversion of the USS OHIO.
Jason has earned a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering (South Dakota School of Mines and
Technology) and a Master of Science in Systems Engineering (Johns Hopkins University).
Jason enjoys spending time catching up on the latest Star Wars series and any, activity that pulls him outdoors with his family.