Jeff has been involved in aerospace journalism since the mid 1990s. Prior to joining Aviation Week, Jeff served as managing editor of Launchspace magazine and the International Space Industry Report. He has been the editor and chief of Aviation Week's Aerospace Daily & Defense Report since 2007 and has been a regular contributor to Aviation Week magazine. He received his B.A. from the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Va.
U.S. troops are now finding and defusing nearly half of the improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in Iraq, and casualties from the devices are holding steady despite a sharp increase in the number being placed, according to the chief scientist for the Joint IED Defeat Organization (JIEDDO).
The U.S. Army National Guard and Air National Guard need a total of $40 billion to get their equipment up to "an acceptable level of readiness," according to National Guard Bureau Chief Lt. Gen. Steven Blum. An acceptable level would be if the Guard had 80 percent of its equipment on hand and ready for operations at any given time, Blum testified during the final hearing of the Commission on the National Guard and Reserves on Capitol Hill Jan. 31. Critical issue
The proposed U.S. missile defense site in Poland clearly is not "oriented toward Russia" and would not negate that country's ballistic missile arsenal, according to U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA) Deputy Director Brig. Gen. Patrick O'Reilly. To be operational by 2011, the Polish site would host up to 10 interceptor missiles at a total cost of about $3.5 billion. Formal talks about the site are getting under way. Meanwhile, the U.S. also is in discussions with the Czech Republic about hosting the radar that would support the interceptors (DAILY, Jan. 26).
