PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. – North American
Aerospace Defense Command will conduct exercise flights today as they practice
intercept and identification procedures. The exercise will occur over southern
Mississippi between 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. CDT.
Although they are scheduled for mid-day, the
flights could be delayed or cancelled due to weather concerns.
The flights are scheduled to take place either in or around Gulfport, Biloxi
and Ocean Springs. People in this area may hear and/or see low-flying
NORAD-controlled fighter jets in close proximity to a military or military
contracted aircraft, which will be taking on the role of aircraft of interest.
In order to test responses, systems and
equipment, NORAD continuously conducts exercises with a variety of scenarios,
including airspace restriction violations, hijackings and responding to unknown
aircraft. All NORAD exercises are carefully planned and closely controlled.
NORAD has conducted exercise flights of this nature throughout Canada and the
U.S. since the start of Operation Noble Eagle, the command’s response to the
terrorist attacks that occurred on Sept. 11, 2001.
NORAD is the bi-national Canadian and American command that provides maritime
warning, aerospace warning and aerospace control for Canada and the United
States. The command has three subordinate regional headquarters: the Alaskan
NORAD Region at Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska; the Canadian NORAD Region at
Canadian Forces Base Winnipeg, Manitoba; and the Continental NORAD Region at
Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla.