Courtney Albon

Space editor at Air & Space Forces Magazine, formerly @defense_news, @C4ISRNET, @insidedefense (she/her)

[Courtney Albon @calbon]

Some job news: Today’s my last day at Defense News. Starting next Friday, I’ll be covering the space beat for Air and Space Forces Magazine. Excited to join the team.

[Air & Space Forces Magazine @ASForcesMag]

Air Force, Space Force Seek 6,000 Civilian Hires in Wake of DOGE Cuts
https://t.co/wLup3TJJsm

[Chris Gordon @ByChrisGordon]

NEW: The main U.S. air war command center in the Middle East suffered a direct hit soon after the war with Iran began and was severely damaged, sources tell Air & Space Forces Magazine. The Combined Air Operations Center at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar was hit by Iranian missiles. A secondary facility in South Carolina filled the gap. https://t.co/S1fqF1e2DW

[Valerie Insinna @ValerieInsinna]

Maybe if Defense News hadn't laid off or pushed out the entirety of its staff, it wouldn't make embarrassing mistakes like this:

[Air & Space Forces Magazine @ASForcesMag]

Space Force Reveals $3.2B in Space-Based Interceptor Awards for Golden Dome
https://t.co/gatRfarXVz

[Joe Gould @reporterjoe]

White House adviser Peter Navarro just said the moon offers a "military advantage." Turns out the Space Force is making plans, per this piece by @calbon: https://t.co/96Hpw1jucw

[Valerie Yurk @valerie_yurk]

Today, our already small and scrappy newsroom got even smaller.

CQ Roll Call owner @FiscalNote laid off four @CQRollCallGuild members after refusing to bargain over the cuts.

Please consider donating to help those impacted: https://t.co/sv9BfTLcmY

[Courtney Albon @calbon]

The Pentagon is considering canceling the "troubled" GPS OCX program, among other options, after years of delays and cost overruns—including significant software defects that arose during government-led testing. https://t.co/T6PFzMG39R

[Tony Bertuca @TonyBertuca]

SCOOP: Pentagon sends Congress $1.56B munitions reprogramming request amid Iran strikes https://t.co/pmFI9Niq5s https://t.co/vxMh2Z8GRn

[Air & Space Forces Magazine @ASForcesMag]

Space Development Agency Faces Challenges Scaling its Growing Constellation
https://t.co/TJRzI5c0Hg

[Courtney Albon @calbon]

SDA's scaling challenges offer a glimpse of what other programs may face as Pentagon leaders demand more of everything—from munitions and drones to satellites and software https://t.co/FKbZrlUwpB

[Courtney Albon @calbon]

The Air Force announced new PAEs for C3BM, NC3, fighters and advanced aircraft, propulsion, and weapons. The Space Force revealed two—space access and space-based sensing and targeting

[Air & Space Forces Magazine @ASForcesMag]

Air Force, Space Force Introduce First Acquisition Portfolios in Reform Push
https://t.co/6kxVj39MLk

[Steve Inskeep @NPRinskeep]

So many ironies.

NYT, WaPo (and NPR and others) gave up Pentagon passes rather than sign a restrictive media policy that cast them as a security threat.

It didn’t stop them from learning critical information, which they handled responsibly as they so often have.

[Air & Space Forces Magazine @ASForcesMag]

SDA Back on Track to Award Satellite Contracts After Funds Went to Troop Shutdown Pay
https://t.co/z9VkBDRXRu

[Courtney Albon @calbon]

“For reasons I don’t understand, it’s just gone.” — A thought I’ve had so many times over the last year or so about @defense_news and @MilitaryTimes. Great publications doing important work, now a shell of what they once were

[Liam Scott @liamjscott]

Former @Militarydotcom staffers say a new owner called Valnet dealt the respected publication a death blow when service members and veterans needed it most.

My latest in @CJR
https://t.co/N3iu9yVxlB

[Courtney Albon @calbon]

“This is a newsroom in freefall. Reinstein’s hostile neglect has hobbled Defense News and Military Times and jeopardized their ability to be a force for strong, effective and original journalism that service members and families need, and that holds officials accountable.”

[Sightline Media Union @SightlineUnion]

Stephen Losey here, president of the Sightline Media Union and air warfare reporter for @defense_news . As of this month, I am also the *last* reporter at Defense News.

Following @JenJudson's departure for Bloomberg, Defense News now has... 🧵 1/x

[Chris Gordon @ByChrisGordon]

FORT MCNAIR—Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth vowed to undertake far-reaching reforms on the way the U.S. military buys weapons, promising a sweeping overhaul of the way the Defense Department determines requirements, handles the acquisition process, and tests its kit. The fundamental goal, which Hegseth underscored in a one-hour speech at the National War College, is “speed.” He repeated the word more than 25 times in his remarks.

W/ the estimable @calbon for @ASForcesMag

https://t.co/cWQB5rrjWQ

[Courtney Albon @calbon]

The memo details major reforms to DOD acquisition, directing a shake-up of program management structures, calling for adoption of commercial-first acquisition strategies, and prioritizing schedule performance over compliance https://t.co/hPu9HRMxys

[Valerie Insinna @ValerieInsinna]

Important to note that all of the defense trade publications refused to sign the Pentagon's media access policy, and we write about budget and military technology--not exactly what you think of when you envision "activists who masquerade as journalists."

[Tony Bertuca @TonyBertuca]

Alert: Inside Defense joins dozens of media outlets in rejecting the Pentagon's new press access policy.
https://t.co/OQcZSCi53t

[Tara Copp @TaraCopp]

This badge fight “arises from an entirely one-sided move by Pentagon officials apparently intent upon cutting the American public off from information they do not control and pre-approve.” For the last few days, Hegseth’s press team has made error after error in their statements to the public. Here are the facts: