Dr. David Winkler is a distinguished historian recognized for his contributions to maritime and naval history. He has worked to unite the maritime heritage community, organizing numerous National Maritime Alliance (NMA) and North American Society for Oceanic History (NASOH) conferences.

Dr. Winkler has served for over two decades as the Naval Historical Foundation staff historian, taught at the US Naval Academy, and is an adjunct professor for the Naval War College – College of Distance Education. He was named the 2020-2021 Smithsonian Air and Space Museum Charles Lindbergh Fellow in Aerospace History and served as the US Naval Academy Class of 1957 Chair of Naval Heritage. A retired Navy commander, he holds a PhD from American University, an MA from Washington University, and a BA from Penn State.

In 2022, NMHS awarded Dr. Winkler the Distinguished Service Award. He co-compiles content for NMHS’s weekly email newsletter, Tuesday Tidings, and serves on the National Maritime Awards Dinner Committee. He has authored many books, published hundreds of articles, and lectured internationally. He has served as the program chair for the 9th, 10th, and 11th Maritime Heritage Conferences and will continue in this role for the 12th MHC in Buffalo, New York, in September 2025.

His notable publications include Cold War at Sea: High Seas Confrontation Between the US and Soviet Union; Incidents at Sea: American Confrontation and Cooperation with Russia and China, 1945-2016; Amirs, Admirals, and Desert Sailors: The US Navy, Bahrain, and the Gulf; and his latest two: Witness to Neptune’s Inferno: The Pacific War Diary of Lieutenant Commander Lloyd M. Mustin, USS Atlanta (CL 51) and America’s First Aircraft Carrier: USS Langley and the Dawn of US Naval Aviation.

Dr. Winkler also actively supports the preservation of historic naval vessels with visitor and education programs nationwide. In 2010, he collaborated with maritime history leaders to save the USS Olympia from being scuttled. Today, it is open to visitors at the Independence Seaport Museum in Philadelphia.