ROME, N.Y. - The Eastern Air Defense Sector will conduct an air defense exercise over northeast New York, southern Vermont, western Connecticut and Massachusetts from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. today, Tuesday, July 22.
Carefully planned and closely controlled, the Fertile Hawk 14-06 exercise has been coordinated with the Federal Aviation Administration and will evaluate elements of the Massachusetts Air National Guard's 104th Fighter Wing. Aircraft involved will be two F-15 fighter jets from the 104th Fighter Wing, a Civil Air Patrol Cessna aircraft and a C-5 cargo plane from Westover Air Reserve Base, Massachusetts. The Cessna and the C-5 will serve as simulated targets for the exercise.
Most activity will not be visible from the ground.
The Eastern Air Defense Sector and its counterpart, the Western Air Defense Sector at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state, are part of the Continental North American Aerospace Defense Command Region (CONR) and are responsible for the air defense of the continental United States. The Sectors conduct these types of exercises on a routine basis as part of North American Aerospace Defense Command's Operation Noble Eagle, which was initiated after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.