NORAD AIR DEFENSE EXERCISE PLANNED FOR NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION
TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. – The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) conducts Exercise FALCON VIRGO, a live-fly air defense exercise, on December 17, 2025, between midnight and 3 a.m. EST in the National Capital Region.
Under the direction of the Continental U.S. NORAD Region, NORAD aircraft participating in the exercise include F-16 fighter aircraft, a U.S. Coast Guard MH-65D Dolphin helicopter, a U.S. Air Force UH-60 helicopter, a U.S. Army UC-35 aircraft, and a Civil Air Patrol C-182 aircraft.
Some portions of the exercise may involve flights at approximately 1,000 feet and may be visible from the ground.
In the event of inclement weather, the exercise is scheduled to commence the next day at the same time.
NORAD routinely conducts exercises with various scenarios, including airspace restriction violations, hijackings, and responses to unknown aircraft. All NORAD exercises are carefully planned and closely controlled.
FALCON VIRGO is a routine exercise in support of Operation NOBLE EAGLE, encompassing all air sovereignty and air defense missions in North America.
Since its inception, NORAD aircraft have identified and intercepted potential air threats to North America, in the execution of its aerospace warning and aerospace control missions, and maintain a watchful eye over Canadian and U.S. internal waterways and maritime approaches under its maritime warning mission.
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