Fighter jets, a Coast Guard helicopter and the Civil Air Patrol combined for exercises in the skies above Oregon on Wednesday.
They took part in drills to help pilots identify, find and warn stray airplanes that they are in closed airspace. And when the pilot ignores the warnings, they can escalate the response.
Playing the role of the plane behaving badly on Wednesday, the Civil Air Patrol.
Their mission? Fly to Salem and do circles while the military, launching later, tries to find and deter them.
“The military is kind of the last resort in military defense,” said Colonel Brett Bosselman.
He’s a squadron commander for the Western Air Defense Sector based at Lewis-McChord ,south of Tacoma.
He said the exercise is valuable to get people from the many agencies involved talking with each other in person.
“We speak a different language. But when we get together we can talk in a briefing room and more clearly talk about how we do things in a more plain English language, not just military speak or secret service speak,” Bosselman said.
As CAP pilots relaxed over Salem, the fighters launched on their intercept mission along with a fast flying coast guard chopper.
Colonel Sean Sullivan is commander of the 142nd fighter squadron based at Portland’s air guard base.
“The F-15s and F-16s are going to act as the eyes and ears of NORAD, where we can provide details and data on the aircraft that can’t necessarily see on radar. Sometimes we can get that from high and far away. Sometimes we have to get closer,” said Col. Sullivan.
On Wednesday, it was from far away. The fighters found the Cessna but were so high and fast, we couldn't even get a shot of them.
The Coast Guard, on the other hand, had the dexterity to get up close and personal, even sending a message on their electronic board that read: You are intercepted.
Real intercepts happen two or three times a year on the West Coast, according to the folks at the base.
“We lean forward and treat things as a threat unless they can be proved otherwise” said Col. Bosselman from the Western Air Defense Sector.
This day’s focus is to make sure the job will happen quickly and smoothly.