(Colorado Springs, Colo., Jun 29, 2009) NORAD and US Northern Command held a combined exercise June 18 - 24 that incorporated several military exercises with a National Guard Exercise. The linked exercises are referred to as ARDENT SENTRY 09 (AS 09). Events took place in multiple venues across the country including Oregon, Wyoming, Kansas, Iowa and off the East Coast.
The exercise allowed several DOD organizations and some federal and state partners to implement plans and respond to a variety of notional events. This exercise enabled both the DOD and other agencies to review their processes and procedures and focus future training efforts on closing gaps and additional areas identified during the exercise.
Major AS 09 venues included:
- NORAD’s AMALGAM DART exercise involving air defense activities at Camp Rilea, Oregon;
- The National Guard’s VIGILANT GUARD exercise focused on civil support with major activities in Des Moines, Iowa and Topeka, Kansas; and,
- A Nuclear Weapons Incident exercise (NUWAIX) with a US Air Force response near Cheyenne, Wyoming;
The activities in the vicinity of Camp Rilea involved the deployment of an Army National Guard ground-based air defense system that was integrated with US Air Force airborne systems (AWACS and fighters) and a US Navy Aegis Destroyer.
Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska National Guard units responded to multiple events in Iowa and Kansas including simulated train derailments and foreign animal disease.
In Wyoming, Air Force Space Command responded to an incident involving a simulated nuclear weapon.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command is a bi-national United States and Canadian organization charged with the missions of aerospace warning and aerospace control for North America. US Northern Command provides command and control of Department of Defense (DOD) homeland defense efforts and, when directed, provides timely and effective defense support of civil authorities. (see www.norad.mil and www.northcom.mil for more information)
For more information about the exercise, contact NORAD and USNORTHCOM Public Affairs at 719-554-6889.