Based in Washington, Jen managed Aviation Week’s worldwide defense, space and security coverage from 2013 to January 2024.
Prior to taking on the Executive Editor role, Jen was Aviation Week's Congressional Editor. Jen came to Aviation Week in March 2011 from Politico, where she covered the intersection of defense and politics. She also worked as a reporter and editor for Defense Daily, Inside the Army, The Other Paper and The Columbus Dispatch.
Jen received a Master’s degree in journalism as a Kiplinger Fellow at the Ohio State University. She graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in history and journalism from the University of Michigan.
President Barack Obama wants to make the U.S. “the top tourist destination in the world,” he announced in a speech last week at Disney World. His plan would reverse a decline in the travel industry that insiders say is fueled by global competition, increased post-9/11 security regulations and a cumbersome visa process. The U.S. Travel Association refers to the drop-off in travel as the “lost decade,” saying the nation missed out on 78 million additional foreign visitors to the U.S., $37 billion in new tax revenues and 467,000 additional U.S. jobs.
The government may talk about conducting “full and open” competitions for military goods and services, but from 2007-10, the Pentagon sole-sourced contracts 41% of the time, spending $606.3 billion on such contracts. A Government Accountability Office report explains that the practice of ditching competitions happens most often because only “one responsible source” exists to meet the agency's requirements.
If the Pentagon's top tester gave letter grades for the reliability of weapons, only the Navy would receive a passing grade—a D-minus. Only 63% of Navy programs and 55% of Army programs cleared military reliability standards. At the bottom of the class is the Air Force. Just 27% of its programs met the service's goals. Michael Gilmore, the director of operational test and evaluation, found that programs including the Small Diameter Bomb, MQ-9 Reaper, Global Hawk and C-27J Joint Cargo Aircraft all fell short in his annual report on the progress of weapon programs.
