The Air Force of Canada, the United States and Denmark practiced on the Arctic as part of the cyclical Operation "Noble Defender". The intent of the training led by the U.S.-Canadian command of NORAD was to strengthen the allied ability to deter, detect and, if necessary, neutralize threats in the North American airspace.
NORAD (North American Aerospace defence Command – North American Air and Space defence Command) is simply a two-national command utilizing a layered defence network composed of satellites, ground and air radar, and fighter aircraft to defend North America.
This year's "Noble Defender" operation active 160 soldiers at the turn of January and February: pilots and aviation personnel from all 3 NORAD regions (Alaski, Canada and the continental United States). They formed a two-national Air Task Force (ATF) task force primarily working with Danish allies. The French besides participated in the exercises. Natov Air Force Alliance Command (Allied Air Command – AIRCOM) stated that the Danish F-35A aircraft benefited from the French Sky Tank A330 MRTT support during the operation.
NORAD forces represented CF-18 Hornet fighters and F-16 Fighting Falcon, KC-135 Stratotanker and KC-46 Pegasus tankers, E-3 Sentra early informing and surveillance aircraft and CH-149 Cormorant air-to-sea rescue helicopters. The Danish CL-604 Challenger aircraft was besides on standby, providing additional search and rescue capabilities. The aircraft operated from the U.S. military base Pitufik in Greenland, performing tasks at highly low temperatures (-25°C, felt -38°C).
– Operation Noble Defender highlights the strength of the integrated American-Canadian NORAD squad and our ability to operate effectively in the Arctic. By combining personnel, aircraft and possible from all 3 NORAD regions, we are constantly improving our readiness to defend North America," said Colonel Ryan Setter, ATF commander.
– Our ability to operate from Greenland, in close cooperation with our Danish partners, Joint Arctic Command and local partners from Inussuk, was a key component in the success of the mission. This is simply a real proof of cooperation between partners and allies," added the Canadian officer.
NORAD stresses that all operations in Greenland are planned well in advance and carried out in cooperation with the Kingdom of Denmark on the basis of required diplomatic authorisations, applicable to all the training parties. As this year’s “Noble Defender” came to an end, a contingent of Swedish Air Force with six aircraft arrived in Iceland JAS 39 Gripen. Swedish pilots for the first time since entering NATO have been on full air surveillance mission (Air Police).
