Jonathan Lehrfeld
Early Bird Brief Editor, Military Times
Jonathan is a staff writer and editor of the Early Bird Brief newsletter for Military Times. Follow him on Twitter @lehrfeld_media
All Stories By Jonathan
US Air Force plans to bed down 25 F-35s in FY26, report says
The report also outlines the service’s procurement schedule to reach a fleet of nearly 1,800 of the aircraft by 2049.
US Air Force instructor pilots have first T-7 in training milestone
Now that Air Education and Training Command has its first T-7, the 99th Flying Training Squadron's instructor pilots will start getting familiar with it.
Bangladesh signs up for Eurofighters in first pick of Western warplane
Earlier this year, a group from the Bangladesh Air Force visited Leonardo’s facility in Turin, Italy, to test-fly the Eurofighter.
Kongsberg, Helsing team up for European satellite-intel constellation
The cooperation will include setting up local satellite production in Germany to create “a self-reliant European defense capability,” the companies said.
In Estonia, Europe’s last road through Russia has closed for good
Across the snowy and muddy forests of eastern Estonia, NATO and Russia are locked in a staring match.
US Air Force wants AI to power high-speed wargaming
The Air Force wants a cloud-based, AI-powered “digital sandbox” as a hub to generate and run wargames at speeds of up 10,000 times faster than real time.
Pentagon taps Google Gemini, launches new site to boost AI use
Hegseth said the U.S. must stay ahead of adversaries who are working to take advantage of rapid technology advancements, like the development of AI.
Italy’s sudden defense-spending uptick lacks details, economist finds
NATO is satisfied with Rome's proclaimed budget boost in line with alliance targets, despite questions over the internal mathematics.
The British Army’s faulty Ajax vehicles come back to rattle Parliament
The armored vehicles had been declared fully functioning after nine years of delays to the $8 billion program and repeated problems with vibrations.
US Navy wants new railroad car to transport unarmed ballistic missiles
Existing railcars are almost 50 years old and will soon be retired. But the Navy still has a need to transport Active Inert Missiles.
