Today, NORTHCOM is the chief DoD entity whose mission is home- land defense. “We monitor all do- mains — air, land, sea, and cyber,” says Brig. Gen. Daniel Hokanson, ARNG, deputy director for strategy, policy, and plans for NORTHCOM and the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). “We monitor for missile threats using forward-based sensors,” he says. In addition to homeland defense, NORTHCOM also provides nation-
training, TSC attention is fixed on transnational crime. This criminal threat has signifi- cant national security implications, says Hokanson. Crime to the south and southwest extends beyond the drug trade. “TSC partners are bat- tling human trafficking, gambling, smuggling, and other threats as well as the illicit narcotics,” he says. The U.S. relies on Mexico’s co-
operation on land and at sea to the south. The shared border with Can-
U.S. share their maritime forces’ stan- dard operating procedures. “Shared information increases our ability to operate together,” says Hokanson. While this kind of information shar- ing is not unique to NORTHCOM, NAMSI helps solidify crucial inter- national relationships important to theater security. “Other agencies have the lead in many areas of [TSC]. U.S. Customs and Border [Protection] heads efforts on our southwest bor- der, for example. NORTHCOM plays an important supporting role in a number of areas,” Hokanson says. NORTHCOM provides military-
Mexican navy Adm. Jorge Carlos Morales speaks at a ceremony at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J., August 2011 marking the U.S. turnover of three Black Hawk helicopters to the Mexican navy.
wide defense support to state and civil authorities and to other near- by nations.
Theater security cooperation NORTHCOM is charged with the- ater security cooperation (TSC) and works closely with the Bahamas, Canada, and Mexico. Though it involves information sharing and
ada to the north and the vast, open ocean at each end make Canada crucial in the U.S. security equation. The waters and islands of the Baha- mas long have provided safe haven for criminals whose presence is a hemispheric threat.
An important part of TSC is the
North American Maritime Security Initiative (NAMSI). Under NAMSI, the Bahamas, Canada, Mexico, and the
to-military training to assist Mexico’s military and works closely with the Mexican army as well as that nation’s naval forces. NORTHCOM also pro- vides equipment. “We sent several UH-60M helicopters to the Mexican navy,” says Hokanson. According to media reports, soon after the helos arrived, Mexican marines patrolling in one of the new Black Hawks spot- ted suspicious activity on the ground. They arrested 19 gunmen with Los Zetas, one of Mexico’s most violent criminal organizations.
State and local support Defense assistance to civil authori- ties is another slice of the NORTH- COM pie. Army Brig. Gen. Kenneth Todorov, NORTHCOM’s deputy di- rector for operations, borrows from a familiar adage: “All disasters are local.” No one is better to respond than state and local authorities, he says.
(previous spread) U.S. Northern Command’s (NORTHCOM’s) mission includes disaster response, such as 1. assisting in the cleanup effort after Hurricane Irene in 2011 and 2. working to control a wildfire in New Mexico. 3. Guardmembers participate in a simulated biohazard exercise sponsored by NORTHCOM. 4. The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) monitors objects in space, such as satellites. 5. NORAD handles aerospace warning and control for North America. 6. The USS Wasp (LHD-1) departs Naval Station Norfolk, Va., to avoid dam- age from Hurriance Irene. 7. Tech. Sgt. Adele Filek, USAF, 628th Medical Group, Joint Base Charleston, S.C., treats a volunteer patient during a NORTHCOM exercise in May 2010. 8. Air Force Staff Sgt. Jam Baro preps an F-16 for a NORAD exercise. 9. The military’s Defense Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Response Force assumes responsibility from state response forces during a NORTHCOM exercise. 10. An Air Force jet flies over Cape Canav- eral, Fla., to ensure airspace safety during a NASA shuttle launch. 11. Controllers at the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center at Tyndall AFB, Fla., work with their counterparts at Mexico’s Rescue Coordination Center. 12. A soldier sur- veys the Arizona/Mexico border for suspected illegal activities.
52 MILITARY OFFICER JUNE 2012
PHOTO: COURTESY U.S. ARMY; FACING-PAGE ILLUSTRATION: COLIN HAYES
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88