Based in Washington, Jen manages Aviation Week’s worldwide defense, space and security coverage.
Prior to taking on her current 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.
Despite optimism from transportation committee leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate, an Ohio Republican has declared the FAA reauthorization bill dead before arrival. Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) and Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.), the chairmen of the Senate and House transportation committees, told Aviation Week that they were optimistic conference negotiations would produce a bill—the first since 2003.
The House Budget Committee chairman is preparing a government-wide proposal to trim the deficit by $4 trillion over the next decade. But lawmakers say Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), who will announce his plan April 5, intends to do it largely without touching the Pentagon’s billions in fiscal 2012. That would be no small feat, indicates Rep. Buck McKeon (R-Calif.), the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee.
Boeing’s Ground-Based Midcourse Defense (GMD) missile shield program is in a financial quandary owing to ongoing anemic Congressional funding from continued resolutions passed this fiscal year and an ongoing review into the program’s last flight-test failure. Though Boeing is continuing to produce the Orbital Ground Based Interceptors (GBIs) made by Orbital Sciences, some suspect components are on hold pending the outcome of an investigation into what caused the failure during a January intercept attempt.
