An Ocala high school graduate and 10-year U.S. Navy veteran is serving with the military’s first unmanned patrol and reconnaissance squadron.
Petty Officer 2nd Class Christian Mays is assigned to Unmanned Patrol Squadron 19 (VUP-19), operating out of Naval Station Mayport, Florida.
As a naval aircrewman (operator), Mays works alongside more than 500 sailors who maintain and launch the MQ-4C Triton, an uncrewed aircraft used to provide persistent intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance for fleet commanders worldwide.
Mays graduated from Vanguard High School in 2016 and earned an associate degree in Uncrewed Systems from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in 2025. He is currently working toward selection for a commission in the Navy’s MQ-25 flying warrant officer program…