Top U.S. General Says Russia's Increasing Military Flights Around Alaska Are 'A Strain On Our Units'

An F-22 intercepts a Russian Tu-95 bomber near Alaska. NORAD 

Business Insider: Russia's increasing military flights around Alaska are 'a strain on our units,' top US commander says 

* Numerous US officials have said that Russian military flights around Alaska have increased. 

 * Responding to them strains Air Force units in Alaska, the top commander there said Wednesday. 

* But they still do it "in a timely, professional manner" and "with style," Air Force Lt. Gen. David Krumm said. 

Russian military flights around Alaska are taxing the US units that respond to them, but they are handling the strain well, the top US commander in Alaska said Wednesday. 

Air Force Lt. Gen. David Krumm, head of Alaskan Command, is the latest US military official to warn about those flights, which have "increased significantly." 

"As a matter of fact, the highest activity we've had since the fall of the Soviet Union occurred last year," Krumm said at an Air Force Association event. "So we've intercepted more airplanes in and around the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone than in a really, really long time." 

Read more ....  

WNU Editor: The U.S. Air Force dwarfs the Russian Air Force. But apparently these few Russian flights off the border of Alaska is straining the US Air Force.

Will NORAD Be Modernized?

This map shows the extent of the North Warning System of radar stations as envisioned by Canada and the United States in 1987. When NORAD is modernized, it’s possible these radar stations may be moved further north. (Map courtesy of Department of National Defence) 

CBC: The golden silence over NORAD renewal and the voices who want to shatter it 

The old proverb "silence is golden" is pretty much the best way to describe the unwritten rule within the halls of power in Ottawa regarding NORAD, the North American Aerospace Defence Command. 

The Liberal government has been largely silent on the matter. 

The defence policy, four years ago, made passing reference to the anticipated multibillion dollar modernization of the North Warning System, the backbone of NORAD. After that, silence. 

Read more .... 

WNU Editor: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and U.S. President Joe Biden made a commitment to the modernization of NORAD and its chain of 47 radar stations running from Labrador to Alaska after they held a virtual meeting on Feb. 23. These radar stations are now obsolete and their lifespan ends in 2025. The cost to modernize NORAD will be approximately $11 billion, and while Trudeau and Biden have committed to modernizing NORAD, it remains unclear when this will happen. 

They better commit the funds to this modernization project quickly. There is a lot of action happening on the border .... US general says NORAD responded to more Russian military flights near Alaska last year than any year since the Cold War (Business Insider).

U.S. And Canada To Modernize Missile-Surveillance System In The Arctic

NATO Association 

Wall Street Journal: Cold War-Era Defense System to Get Upgrade to Counter Russia, China 

The U.S. and Canada move to modernize a missile-surveillance system in the Arctic that officials say is outdated 

TORONTO—The U.S. and Canada plan to modernize a network of defense satellites and radar in the Arctic, in a bid to counter a growing military presence in the north from Russia and China. 

President Biden asked Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to ramp up Canada’s spending on defense, including an upgrade of the North American Aerospace Defense Command, commonly known as Norad, during a bilateral meeting between the two leaders on Tuesday, according to an official familiar with the discussions. 

Norad was a central part of the U.S. and Canadian military’s Cold War deterrence strategy against the former Soviet Union. Consisting of satellites, ground-based radar, and air-force bases located mostly in Alaska and the Canadian Arctic, the surveillance system was designed to give the military allies notice of any impending attack from the north.

Read more .... 

Update #1: NORTHCOM, NORAD Needs to Modernize Faster, Change Thinking to Improve Deterrence (Air Force Magazine) 

Update #2: US, Canada agree to modernize NORAD, launch extended dialogue on Arctic - Biden (TASS) 

WNU Editor: This modernization of NORAD is long overdue.

This F-22 Pilot Says What It's Like To Get Up Close With Russian Aircraft Over The Arctic

Business Insider: What it's like to get up close with Russian aircraft over the Arctic, according to an F-22 pilot who's done it

* US aircraft have scrambled several times this year to intercept Russian planes flying around Alaska.
* Those aircraft, sometimes flying with Canadian fighters, get up close with Russian planes — sometimes for hours at a time.
* "We can see each other. They know that we're there," F-22 pilot 1st Lt. Brett Meyer told Insider, "and we know obviously that they are there."

Four times this year, North American Aerospace Defense Command has reported Russian aircraft flying into the Air Defense Identification Zone that extends about 200 miles from Alaska's coast.

Three of those flights prompted NORAD to send aircraft out to keep an eye on them — including US Air Force F-22 Raptor stealth fighters from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson near Anchorage, where pilots were waiting.

"We always have somebody who is ready to go in the event that we get the call," said 1st Lt. Brett Meyer, an F-22 pilot with the 90th Fighter Squadron, part of the 3rd Operations Group under the 3rd Wing.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: The Northern Lights must be quite a sight to see when these intercepts are at night-time.

NORAD's Command Center Isolates Itself Into Mountain Bunker

U.S. military personnel work at Cheyenne Mountain, a Cold War-era facility built into a Colorado mountain, where a team of about 130 service members cloistered from their families and the broader military community are now operating an air defense and watch mission for North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).

The Hour/Washington Post: To protect 'no-fail' mission, U.S. military unit moves into mountain bunker

In late February, Brig. Gen. Pete Fesler prepared about 130 troops under his command to mobilize for a new mission, one that would take them away from their families and involve extensive precautions to keep service members safe.

Tapping his experience from deployments in Asia and the Middle East, the former fighter pilot made plans for adapting the unit's sensitive mission to new hazards over an unknown period of time, as authorities scrambled to anticipate the moves of an unpredictable adversary.

The difference from his previous assignments: At the end of the day, instead of being halfway around the world, Fesler can look out from the base where he's lodging and see the neighborhood where his wife and kids are hunkered down during the coronavirus pandemic.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: They are not in the mountain bunker complex 24/7. But they can be if the situation demands it.

US And Canadian Fighter Jets Intercept Russian Military Aircraft Near Alaska

Daily Mail: US F-22 stealth jets and Canadian F-18 fighters intercept two Russian reconnaissance planes that refused to leave the Alaskan Air Defense Zone for four hours

* Two Russian Tupolev Tu-142 reconnaissance planes were intercepted Monday
* US and Canadian fighter jets escorted the planes during four-hour flight
* North American officials say Russian planes flew 50 miles off Alaskan coast

Fighter jets from the United States and Canada intercepted two Russian aircraft flying just off Alaska's northern coast on Monday.

The North American Aerospace Defense Command planes, which included American F-22 stealth fighters and Canadian F-18 jets, escorted the two Russian Tu-142s during their four-hour flight.

The US and Canadian fighter planes were supported by a KC-135 Stratotanker and an E-3 Sentry AWACS aerial reconnaissance aircraft.

Military officials say the Russian jets never left international airspace but did come within 50 nautical miles - or 57 miles - of Alaska’s northern coast at one point.

Read more ....

More News On US And Canadian Fighter Jets Intercepting Russian Military Aircraft Near Alaska

US and Canadian jets intercept Russian reconnaissance aircraft off Alaska -- CNN
U.S. and Canadian jets intercept 2 Russian planes near Alaska -- CBS/AP
U.S. jet fighters help intercept Russian military planes approaching Alaska -- Washington Times
US, Canadian fighter jets intercept Russian aircraft above Alaska -- The Hill
US, Canadian Fighters Intercept Russian Spy Planes North of Alaska -- Military.com
U.S. Air Force F-22 fighters intercept Russian aircraft -- Defence Blog

Two Long-Range Russian Bombers Buzzed Canadian Airspace Friday Morning

Tupolev Tu-160 (NATO reporting name: Blackjack) supersonic bomber at the Engels Air Force Base on Dec. 5, 2011. (Photo ITAR-TASS/ Dmitry Rogulin)

CBC/Canadian Press: Russian bombers buzzed Canadian airspace: NORAD

Two long-range Russian bombers buzzed Canadian airspace Friday morning.

Two long-range Russian bombers buzzed Canadian airspace this morning, only days after a senior military officer warned that North America's early warning system is outdated.

The North American Aerospace Defence Command says the two Tu-160 Blackjack bombers crossed the North Pole and approached Canada from western Russia, but remained in international airspace before departing.

NORAD tracked the bombers as they flew through Canada's air defence identification zone, but did not scramble fighters to intercept the Russians.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: At least NORAD knew they were there .... Senior officer warns NORAD can't detect Russian bombers in time, needs upgrades (CBC).

Russian Blackjack Strategic Bombers 'Buzz' The North American Coastline

An E-3 AWACS, 2x F-22, 2x CF-18 fighter jets from NORAD positively identified 2x Russian Tu-160 Blackjack strategic bombers entering the Canadian Air Defense Identification Zone on January 26, 2019. Bombers remained in international airspace and did not enter sovereign territory pic.twitter.com/utKe26SRBB

— NORAD & USNORTHCOM (@Norad_Northcom) January 26, 2019

Daily Mail: US and Canadian Air Force scramble four fighter jets to intercept two Russian bombers closing in on North American airspace off coast of Alaska

* Two US Air Force F-22 fighter jets and two Canadian CF-18 jets escorted the aircraft, which 'remained in international airspace'
* NORAD 'positively identified 2x Russian Tu-160 Blackjack strategic bombers'
* First known Russian flight near North America this year
* The US Air Force sent planes from their air base in Alaska and the Russian planes 'did not enter sovereign territory'
* 'Ability to deter and defeat threats to our citizens starts with successfully detecting, tracking and positively identifying aircraft of interest', NORAD says

The US and Canadian Air Force were forced to scramble four fighter jets Saturday to intercept two Russian bombers closing in on North American airspace off the coast of Alaska.

Two US Air Force F-22 fighter jets and two Canadian CF-18 jets escorted the supersonic, nuclear capable aircraft after they were spotted above North America.

Both jets 'remained in international airspace', according to The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).

Officials said 'NORAD positively identified 2x Russian Tu-160 Blackjack strategic bombers entering the Canadian Air Defense Identification Zone'.

Read more ....

More News On Russian Blackjack Strategic Bombers Buzzing The North American Coastline

U.S., Canadian fighter planes scramble to escort Russian jets -- CTV News/AP
Russian bombers buzz North American coastline -- FOX News
US Air Force and Canadian fighter jets scramble to escort Russian bombers away from North American airspace -- NZHerald

Canadian General: 'U.S. Policy Is Not To Defend Canada' In The Event Of A Missile Attack

National Post: 'U.S. policy is not to defend Canada' in the event of a missile attack, general says

Participation in the ballistic missile defence program would be costly, but, amid nuclear threats, it appears we are no longer under the protective umbrella of the U.S.

Politicians approach most subjects with open mouths, but they are rarely at a loss for words.

That’s why the testimony at a House of Commons defence committee, specially convened to consider the thorny problem that is North Korea, was so memorable.

Honourable members were stumped by the testimony of Lt. Gen. Pierre St-Amand, the Canadian who serves as deputy commander of North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD) in Colorado Springs.

Conservative MP James Bezan asked St-Amand whether he agreed with the common Canadian perception that the Americans would shoot down an incoming intercontinental ballistic missile heading for a Canadian city, even though Canada is not a participant in the U.S.’s ballistic missile defence program. His response jolted the committee members from their late-summer stupor.

“I’m being told in Colorado Springs that U.S. policy is not to defend Canada. That’s fact I can bring to the table,” he said.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: An attack on Canada will kick in NATO provisions .... so yes .... the U.S. will defend Canada, but (probably) only after the attack.

More News On Reports That 'U.S. Policy Is Not To Defend Canada' In The Event Of A Missile Attack

'U.S. policy is not to defend Canada' from ICBMs -- CTV News/Canadian Press
U.S. won’t defend Canada during North Korean missile attack, official says -- Global News
US policy is 'not to defend Canada' in any N Korea attack -- BBC
US policy is 'not to defend Canada' from an attack by North Korea -- The Independent
Canada should join ballistic missile defence system, but it will cost us: experts -- Global News

NORAD Was Scrambled Into Action By The Boston Bombing

NORAD/NORTHCOM’s Command Center Scrambled Into Action By Boston Bombing -- The E-Ring/Foreign Policy

When a bomb exploded in Boston, first responders rushed to help victims on the street. At the same time, deep inside Cheyenne Mountain, the military’s North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM) began their own scramble to determine if something more was happening -- was America under attack?

The U.S. military got its first information about the Boston Marathon bombing the same way the rest of the country did -- from live images on cable television. Quickly the NORAD/NORTHCOM Command Center, or N2C2, began a threat assessment.

Read more ....

My Comment: 9/11 changed a lot on how we view security .... NORAD's involvement when a terror incident occurs is testament to that.

Christmas Is Around The Corner

NORAD Santa Tracking Site Ready! -- Aol Defense

It is my favorite defense-related story of the Christmas season: NORAD, the command responsible for tracking possible airborne threats to America tracks Santa as he roams the globe.

In addition to tracking Santa on the day, the site offers Santa Cams that show Santa at locations around the globe, as well as lots of Christmas music and some games.

Why does NORAD do this fabulous thing?

Read more ....

WNU Editor: The NORAD tracking site is here.