Courtney Albon
Courtney Albon is C4ISRNET’s space and emerging technology reporter. She has covered the U.S. military since 2012, with a focus on the Air Force and Space Force. During that time, she reported on some of the Defense Department’s most significant acquisition, budget and policy challenges, including the F-35 jet, hypersonic capabilities and the creation of the Space Force.
Connect
All Stories By Courtney
Pentagon officials tout rapid experimentation at courtyard showcase
Officials said Wednesday that rapid experimentation is now "institutionalized" after cutting a program created to find and quickly demo high-need tech.
Pentagon taps four commercial tech firms to expand military use of AI
The four firms — Google, Anthropic, OpenAI and Elon Musk's xAI — will help the DOD develop AI workflows for key national security missions.
Jammed and confused: Alaska trial shows pitfalls of fielding US drones
One drone failed repeatedly to find its target when jammed and ultimately crashed into a hill. Another flew past its target and went up in flames.
Space Force building out more realistic digital training environment
STARCOM plans to transition Swarm to a cloud-based environment in the next year or two if it has the funding to support the effort.
Hegseth calls for extensive reforms to Pentagon drone-buying practices
The memo directs the military services to create active duty formations by September, built for the sole purpose of scaling the use of drones across DOD.
Pentagon trials drone-spotting air traffic suite at US bases worldwide
The Air Force Research Laboratory's CLUE system could help military and civil agencies better integrate drone operations into the airspace.
Air Force review spotlights risks in space agency’s go-fast approach
The report recommends SDA make process and culture changes as it looks to scale from handfuls of demo satellites to hundreds of operational spacecraft.
Space Force picks Boeing for $2.8B strategic communications program
The new satellites will have improved resilience and cyber capabilities and provide polar coverage — a capability not featured on the legacy satellites.
