Minden native serves with Navy’s first unmanned undersea vehicle group Chief Petty Officer Anthony Guzman is assigned to UUVGRU-1, based in Keyport, Washington MINDEN, La. (KSLA) - A Minden native is among the sailors and engineers working to extend the U.S. Navy’s reach through unmanned undersea vehicles on a peninsula in the Pacific Northwest. Chief Petty Officer Anthony Guzman, a 2008 graduate of Minden High School, is assigned to Unmanned Undersea Vehicle Group (UUVGRU) 1 — the Navy’s first unmanned undersea group. From Minden to the Pacific Northwest Guzman joined the Navy 17 years ago and now serves as a fire control technician. “I joined the Navy to see the world,” Guzman said. “My father was in the Army, so I was aware of some of the benefits the military offered, and the opportunity to travel was the main pull toward the Navy.” He said the values he developed growing up in Minden have carried over into his military career. “Growing up, I learned that hard work and good interpersonal skills would carry me a long way,” Guzman said. “Those have allowed me to work with others despite personal differences. It has fostered good teamwork environments.” About UUVGRU-1 Established in 2017 and based at Naval Undersea Warfare Center in Keyport, Washington, UUVGRU-1 develops, tests and operates rapidly deployable unmanned undersea vehicles to further the Navy’s underwater capabilities, according to Navy officials. The unmanned vehicles can reach environments that a human crew may not be able to safely or easily access. The group operates various types of autonomous vehicles, ranging from the small Iver series vehicles to the extra-large, 85-foot-long diesel-electric Orca vehicle. Sailors assigned to UUVGRU-1 can quickly modify and adapt the vehicles to fit assigned tasks, in keeping with the command’s motto to “extend the reach” of the Navy’s