NORAD Postpones Exercise

NORAD tweeted that Exercise Falco-Virgo was postponed until 16 January 2020 because of bad weather.All other details will be the same.That means the drills,which are a part of Operation Noble Eagle,the beefed-up air defence since 9-11,will take place tonight from 12:30 am-2:30 am.

Air Defence Puzzle:Complex Exercise Challenges NORAD,US STRATCOM

NORAD,the North American Aerospace and Defense Command,along with its close partner and fellow combatant command US Strategic Command,conducted a day of joint,comprehensive intercept and safe passage exercises in all three of the NORAD regions with a broad range of warplanes on 1 August 2016,the command revealed in a press release.The carefully planned and controlled drills ensured NORAD's rapid response capability.Normally,only one intercept at a time is conducted with only one type of interceptor and bomber involved.This test injected more layers of complexity by varying types of aircraft,commands involved,location and nationality.The scenario was a more realistic simulation of what an actual attack by a sophisticated enemy would be like.*
In these exercises,US Strategic Command B-52H Stratofortess and B-2 Spirit bombers conducted flights through each of the NORAD regions that were intercepted by three types of fighter aircraft:
2 F-22 Raptors in the Alaska NORAD Region,based at Elmendorf Air Force Base,Alaska;
2 CF-18 Hornets in the Canadian NORAD Region,based at Canadian Forces Base Winnipeg,Manitoba;and
2 F-15 Eagles in the Continental United States NORAD Region,based at Tyndall Air Foce Base,Florida.*
US Defense Secretary Ash Carter noted that the bomber flights provided NORAD with an excellent opportunity to hone our air defence capabilities,while also allowing us the opportunity to closely coordinate operations with our allies and the geographic combatant commands.*
Our ability to conduct intercept and safe passage escort procedures to coincide with American flights reinforces Canada's outstanding collaboration and interoperability with our closest ally.Canada and the US continue to expand on our close partnership,added Canada's Minister of National Defence Harjit S. Sajjan.*
The intercepts honed Operation Noble Eagle's procedures,cross-border interoperability and coordination,and to reinforce the enduring defence relationship between the US and Canada.
NORAD is the binational Canada-US command that provides aerospace warning,aerospace control and maritime warning for Canada and the US,NORAD explained.*
Operation Noble Eagle has guided the joint Canadian-US defence of North American airspace since the 9-11 attacks on the US by al-Qaida.

Air Defense Briefing:1st Air Force Facts

CONR-1AF(AFNORTH),or 1st Air Force,is the NORAD Continental U.S. Region command and the designated air component command for U.S. Northern Command,providing air defense in the form of airspace surveillance and airspace control.It is responsible for the land areas of the continental U.S.,Puerto Rico and surrounding seas out to approximately 500 nautical miles.It also responds to natural disasters and coordinates search and rescue throughout the lower 48 states,Mexico and Canada.The command emblem features both a bald eagle and a maple leaf.
Nearly 2300 active duty U.S. Air Force,Air National Guard,Air Force Reservists,civilians and contractors support the missions of CONR-1AF(AFNORTH),operating more than 180 aircraft,including F-15s,F-16s and F-22s.The command is based at Tyndall Air Force Base,Florida.It is divided into two air defense sectors:EADS in Rome,New York;and WADS in McChord AFB,Washington state.
1st Air Force works closely with Canadian Forces.Canadian personnel serve at HQ in Tyndall AFB,Florida,as well as at the two regional air defense sectors in New York and Washington states.By the same token,U.S. personnel serve at 1AF Detachment 1,Winnipeg,Manitoba;and at 722nd Air Defense Squadron,North Bay,Ontario in Canada.
The personnel of 1st Air Force include many veterans of Kosovo,Iraq and Afghanistan.Most of them are Air National Guard members,proudly and ably executing all phases of Operation Noble Eagle,the air sovereignty mission of NORAD Continental U.S. Region.
NORAD is the North American Aerospace Defense Command,a binational U.S.-Canadian military organisation that secures the continental airspace.

Combat Air Patrol Observed Near Camp David

When the president is in residence at the Camp David retreat in Maryland's Catoctin Mountains,the normal restricted airspace over the camp is extended outward from 3 nautical miles,or 6.5 miles,to 10 nautical miles,or about 22 miles in diameter.As the president is at Camp David this weekend,I know that combat air patrols by NORAD military aircraft may be visible.Still,they are more often heard than seen as they carry out their part in Operation Noble Eagle,as the post 9-11 airspace protection mission is known.I indeed hear them as I walk near the Mason-Dixon line,the border between Maryland and Pennsylvania which lies beneath the expanded restricted airspace.The jet engine noise of a sudden becomes very loud.I pause and,looking up,regard the swift low passage of an F-15 Eagle,painted olive drab or gray,hurtling north toward the edge of the security perimeter with jaw-dropping speed.This is better than an air show;it is the real deal,a combat air patrol protecting the President of the United States and his family and guests,as well as their neighbors in Northern Maryland and South Central Pennsylvania.The F-15 banks to the left and the right before vanishing over the horizon.There may be another,unseen fighter aloft at a greater altitude also participating in the patrol.Suffice it to say,the Air National Guard F-15 had made my walk one of the safest in the world on that sunny morning. NORAD,the North American Aerospace Defense Command,is the binational U.S.-Canadian organization that monitors and defends the continent's sovereign airspace.