Exercise Falcon Dart
TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, FLA. (10/13/2009)(readMedia)-- The Continental United States NORAD Region, a geographical component of the North American Aerospace Defense Command, will conduct a three-day homeland defense exercise, Falcon Dart, beginning Oct. 14 along the eastern seaboard and in New England.
This exercise is designed to train CONRs intercept and identification operations and will involve fighters out of Barnes Air National Guard Base, Mass., Jacksonville ANG, Fla., Homestead Air Reserve Base, Fla., and aircraft from other federal agencies.
Residents may hear aircraft noise and see aircraft flying at various times throughout the day.
Air Force B-52 Stratofortresses will simulate tracks of interest during the first day of the exercise. The Eastern Air Defense Sector, based in Rome, N.Y., will direct Air Force F-15 Eagles to intercept the B-52s along the eastern seaboard.
F-15s from the Florida Air National Guards 125th Fighter Wing based in Jacksonville and the Massachusetts Air National Guards 104th FW based at Barnes ANGB will be launched to intercept the B-52s.
On days two and three of the exercise, Air Force C-21s (military version of the Lear Jet 35A business jet) and Civil Air Patrol fixed-wing aircraft will simulate tracks of interest in the Ashland, N. H., area. F-15s from Barnes ANGB, along with fixed and rotary-wing aircraft from U.S. Customs and Border Protection will be launched to intercept the TOIs.
CONR, along with its Eastern and Western Air Defense Sectors, provides airspace surveillance and control and directs all air sovereignty activities over the continental United States.
NORAD has conducted exercise flights of this nature throughout the U.S. and Canada since the start of Operation Noble Eagle, the commands response to the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.
As the Continental United States geographical component of the bi-national command NORAD, CONR provides airspace surveillance and control and directs air sovereignty activities for the CONUS Region. CONR and its assigned Air Force forces throughout the country ensure air safety and security against potential air threats.
Since Sept. 11, 2001, CONR fighters have responded to more than 2,300 possible air threats in the United States and have flown more than 54,000 sorties with the support of Airborne Warning and Control System and air-to-air-refueling aircraft
