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.
This week, the House and Senate both return to work in Washington, where the fate of the FAA’s reauthorization bill still remains up in the air. One of the outstanding issues between the House and Senate versions of the bill has been the number of long flights that can take off from Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Va.
Fearing that the administration's Phased Adaptive Approach to missile defense in Europe could imperil the Boeing-run system designed to intercept intercontinental ballistic missiles, some Republicans are trying to add money for the Ground-Based Midcourse Defense system. But in the race to gain backing for GMD, funding for Lockheed Martin's Medium Extended Air Defense System (Meads) might just get shot down.
CIA Director Leon Panetta, the nominee to replace Robert Gates as defense secretary, sailed through a relatively cordial confirmation hearing in Washington June 9, but not before pledging to look at cost-sharing ideas that could put a crimp on contractors. His statement before the Senate Armed Services Committee was drawn out during an exchange with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who hammered away at the excesses of cost-plus contracting, drawing a chuckle from the nominee.
