Jan. 20, 2016 –
PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colorado – Defence Minister Harjit S. Sajjan paid his first visit
to the North American Aerospace Defense Command Headquarters at Peterson Air Force Base
in Colorado today. During his visit, he met with Admiral Bill Gortney, Commander of NORAD
and U.S. Northern Command and Canadian Lieutenant-General Pierre St-Amand, Deputy
Commander of NORAD. Discussions focused on a number of issues important to the Canada-
U.S. defense relationship, including continental defense, new challenges to North American
aerospace defense and NORAD’s continuing evolution to meet those challenges.
The Minister toured the NORAD facilities and had an opportunity to speak with a number of
Canadian and American military personnel who serve at its headquarters. Minister Sajjan
released the following statement at the conclusion of his visit:
“My visit to NORAD was a great opportunity to discuss the important work being carried out by
this unique binational defence partnership to protect North America from potential airborne and
seaborne threats. I want to thank Admiral Gortney and Lieutenant-General St-Amand and their
dedicated team for their ongoing leadership and cooperation, which is essential for the defence
and security of North America now and for the future.”
NORAD is the binational 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 Joint Base
Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska; the Canadian NORAD Region at Canadian Forces Base
Winnipeg, Manitoba; and the Continental NORAD Region at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida.
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For more information about NORAD, refer to http://www.norad.mil/
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