Process
Producing the Ships of the Navy poster each year starts with gathering up-to-date information and images of the latest naval ships from various government sources.
From trade show giveaway to teaching tool
Retired admiral inspires cadets with Ships of the Navy poster
Retired U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Jeffery Scott Jones was on a mission.
It was the last day of the 2024 Sea-Air-Space maritime exhibition, and the admiral was in search of swag. Not for himself, but for the more than 50 cadets he mentors at Washington High School’s Naval Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps unit back in Missouri.
After 37 years of service in the U.S. Navy and several years as an aerospace executive in the private sector, Jones had attended many shows like this and knew there’d be leftover giveaways. He thought he might pick up a few key fobs, some mousepads – maybe a poster or two – and be on his way.
“I didn’t know the backstory of the Ships of the Navy posters,” he said, “but I knew Raytheon, now RTX, made them. So I stopped by the booth and asked if they had any extras.”
Pam Marshall, a trade show lead for RTX, surprised him with not one, but two, boxes of posters to take back.
“It was a bonanza,” said Jones, who called Senior Chief Nathan Hernandez, the cadet leader, on the drive home. “I told him, you won’t believe what I’m bringing you back.”
Hernandez, who served in the U.S. Navy for 26 years and has been leading NJROTC units for the past 12, was thrilled to hear the Ships of the Navy poster was heading their way.
“Are you kidding?” he said to Jones. “It’s got every ship in the Navy on there – we can use these a thousand different ways.”
Jones made sure every cadet received one. The posters now hang in their rooms. Some had theirs framed, and they sent the leftovers to other NJROTC units in the state.
“Every day, we talk about the ships,” said Hernandez. “The cadets ask: ‘What’s this one do? What’s the difference between a cruiser and a destroyer? Which one were you on?’”
Cadets from the NJROTC program at Washington High School in Washington, Missouri, stand with a framed version of the 2024 RTX “Ships and Submarines of the United States Navy” poster.
The poster also invites discussion about ship design and function.
“I can say, these doors here can close if there’s an incident and keep other parts of the ship safe,” said Hernandez. “Or, this ship has boilers, where you actually have to light fires, boil water, and create steam to move the turbines – it might take 48 hours to get underway. This one has jet engines, so all you do is turn a key and the ship is ready in seconds. If the cadets are interested, we talk about it.”
Hernandez and Jones both said it’s rewarding to work with such an engaged group of high school students.
“They all work hard, do their research and know what’s going on with current events,” said Jones, who helps the cadets with things like maritime history and protocol, special events and routine NJROTC inspections. He often uses the Ships of the Navy poster to quiz the cadets on their ship knowledge.
“I get great satisfaction helping people achieve their goals,” he said. “And giving back is important. I don’t know how many of the cadets will go into military service, but I encourage them to try and find a way to serve others, to serve the country.”
Jones helped pull the group together for a photo with one of the posters – at one point running out to an office supply store for posterboard and Velcro fasteners to ensure the poster was ready for its close-up. At Sea-Air-Space 2025, he shared the photo, plus a thank you card from the cadets, with Marshall and Cory Lloyd, the Raytheon test architect who updates the poster every year.
Read more about the work that goes into the Ships of the Navy poster here.
Fast facts:
Design
Designers create detailed and accurate illustrations of these ships, ensuring every feature is depicted correctly.
Review
The poster goes through a series of reviews to ensure accuracy and quality.
Production
The poster is printed and distributed at various maritime defense trade shows, and a downloadable version is placed online.
