NORAD
From the UAP Encyclopedia, the open encyclopedia of UFO and UAP history · 🏢 Organization
Contents 6
![Official seal of the North American Aerospace Defense Command . Note that the oceans' color is supposed to be "turquoise" [1] but has consistently…](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:North_American_Aerospace_Defense_Command_logo.svg){kind=logo}
| Type | Organization |
|---|---|
| Also known as | North American Aerospace Defense Command |
| On the Timeline | 10 events, 1955–1996 |
The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) is a joint United States–Canada military command responsible for aerospace warning, aerospace control and maritime warning for North America. In UFO history it is associated with radar tracking of unknown objects, the term "Fastwalker", and the shooting down of several unidentified objects in February 2023.[1][2]
History
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NORAD was established on 12 September 1957 as the North American Air Defense Command and was renamed the North American Aerospace Defense Command in 1981. By agreement its commander is always an American officer, with a Canadian deputy. Its headquarters are at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado Springs, with the hardened Cheyenne Mountain Complex as an alternate command centre since day-to-day operations moved to Peterson in 2006. After the attacks of 11 September 2001 its role expanded to watching airspace inside North America.[1]
Santa tracker
NORAD is also known to the public for its annual "NORAD Tracks Santa" Christmas tradition, begun by its predecessor command on 24 December 1955.[1]
Unknown objects
The term "Fastwalker" was used for unknown objects detected by the Defense Support Program early-warning satellites, which have been part of NORAD's warning system since 1970. In 2013 NORAD's parent command told researcher John Greenewald that all NORAD material on the subject was classified.[3]
2023 shootdowns
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In early February 2023 NORAD tracked a Chinese surveillance balloon across North America, and on 4 February it was shot down by an F-22 off South Carolina. Over the next week U.S. fighters shot down three smaller objects, over the Beaufort Sea near Alaska on 10 February, over Yukon in Canada on 11 February, and over Lake Huron on 12 February. After the balloon incident NORAD had adjusted its radar filters to detect slower, smaller objects. U.S. officials later said the three objects probably belonged to private entities and were unrelated to China.[2]
On the UAP Timeline
- Tompkins's secret space program claims (1 March 1955) — Tompkins also describes alleged secret underground bases tied to a hidden space program.
- Mach 3 radar target alert (1957) (24 September 1957) — The Air Force intelligence chief warns of a radar target crossing the U.S. at Mach 3.
- Wheless memo on UFO impostors (1967) (1 March 1967) — An Air Force memo warns of men in uniform telling UAP witnesses to stay silent.
- F. Robert Naka and NORAD space tracks (14 February 1968) — A MITRE scientist tells the Condon study that NORAD radars have tracked UAP arriving from space.
- Malmstrom Romeo-29 incident (1974) (March 1974) — A large glowing object hovers over a Minuteman launch facility at Malmstrom AFB, Montana.
- Charred body in Colorado claim (1978) (1978) — An Air Force technician says he saw a charred alien body at an underground site in Colorado.
- Samuel Stratton and the SAC base overflights (20 December 1978) — Rep. Samuel Stratton raises concerns over unknown aircraft flying over Strategic Air Command bases.
- NORAD's $294,157 search fee (September 1979) — NORAD says a search for UAP tracking data would cost $294,157.
- Osedacz thesis on fastwalkers (1989) (June 1989) — An Air Force captain writes that a database of UAP in near-Earth orbit has long existed.
- Michael Smith's NORAD reporting account (30 August 1996) — An Air Force radar controller says UAP events were only to be reported to NORAD.
References
- NORAD — Wikipedia · en.wikipedia.org · archived copy
- 2023 Chinese balloon incident — Wikipedia · en.wikipedia.org · archived copy
- "Fastwalkers & Slowwalkers", The Black Vault · theblackvault.com · archived copy
This page was last edited on 29 October 2026. Articles are written in our own words from the sources listed under References; disputed claims are attributed to the people who made them.
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