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Press Releases
Press Release | Nov. 9, 2020

NORAD conducts live-fly air defense exercise ahead of manned space launch

Peterson Air Force Base, Colo. – The North American Aerospace Defense Command, together with interagency partners, are preparing for next week’s space launch by conducting an air defense exercise over Cape Canaveral, Florida scheduled for November 10, with flights between 10-11 a.m. EST.

Aircraft participating in the exercise include U.S. Air Force F-16 aircraft, a Custom and Border Protection Air and Marine Operations Super King Air 350, and a Civil Air Patrol Cessna C182 aircraft.  Some portions of the exercise may involve flights from approximately 7,500 feet and may be visible from the ground. If weather prevents these  scheduled flights, the exercise will be cancelled.

This air defense exercise allows NORAD and interagency partners to train together to help bring awareness to the general aviation community about temporary flight restrictions, or TFR’s, around Cape Canaveral to ensure the airspace is clear for the manned space launch scheduled for November 14. 

NORAD is committed to the defense of North America by identifying and intercepting potential air threats through its enforcement of the aerospace warning and aerospace control missions.

NORAD is a bi-national Canadian and American command, NORAD employs a network of space-based, aerial and ground-based sensors, air-to-air refueling tankers and fighter aircraft on alert, controlled by a sophisticated command and control network to detect, deter, and defend against aerial threats that originate outside or within North American airspace.