diff --git a/dev-bin/release.sh b/dev-bin/release.sh
index c1486ae7..6cda4e2d 100755
--- a/dev-bin/release.sh
+++ b/dev-bin/release.sh
@@ -2,6 +2,37 @@
 
 set -eu -o pipefail
 
+# Pre-flight checks - verify all required tools are available and configured
+# before making any changes to the repository
+
+check_command() {
+    if ! command -v "$1" &>/dev/null; then
+        echo "Error: $1 is not installed or not in PATH"
+        exit 1
+    fi
+}
+
+# Verify gh CLI is authenticated
+if ! gh auth status &>/dev/null; then
+    echo "Error: gh CLI is not authenticated. Run 'gh auth login' first."
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+# Verify we can access this repository via gh
+if ! gh repo view --json name &>/dev/null; then
+    echo "Error: Cannot access repository via gh. Check your authentication and repository access."
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+# Verify git can connect to the remote (catches SSH key issues, etc.)
+if ! git ls-remote origin &>/dev/null; then
+    echo "Error: Cannot connect to git remote. Check your git credentials/SSH keys."
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+check_command node
+check_command npm
+
 # Check that we're not on the main branch
 current_branch=$(git branch --show-current)
 if [ "$current_branch" = "main" ]; then
@@ -73,7 +104,7 @@ git diff
 echo $'\nRelease notes:'
 echo "$notes"
 
-read -e -p "Commit changes and create release? (y/n) " should_continue
+read -r -e -p "Commit changes and create release? (y/n) " should_continue
 
 if [ "$should_continue" != "y" ]; then
     echo "Aborting"