Stefanie Peterson

Stefanie Peterson is a Major in the U.S. Air Force, and a visiting defense fellow working on Capitol Hill. Previously, she was the senior intelligence officer of the 48th Fighter Wing at England’s Lakenheath Air Base, where she directed intelligence personnel in support of the wing, which included three F-15 fighter squadrons and one HH-60 rescue squadron. She has served in a number of intelligence assignments, including command briefer and weapons of mass destruction (WMD) analyst for U.S. Central Command. There, Stefanie served as lead analyst for Iran, focusing on the Iranian nuclear and ballistic missile programs. She also deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom as a collection manager and intelligence liaison. Immediately after the September 11 attacks, she drafted the operations plan for bringing the RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned aircraft into the Afghan theater.