NORAD Ready to Track Santa

[The Bread Guy]

And here's the Canadian pilots escorting:

As Christmas gets closer, the Canadian NORAD Region has put the finishing touches on plans to track and escort Santa Claus when he visits Canada, and has selected four CF-18 fighter pilots who will act as Santa’s official escorts.

425 Tactical Fighter Squadron Commander, Lieutenant-Colonel Sylvain Ménard, and Major Eric Haas, an exchange officer from the United States Air Force, will launch from 3 Wing Bagotville, Que., to welcome Santa as the sleigh approaches Canadian airspace. 409 Squadron Commander, Lt.-Col. Eric Kenny, and Captain Chad Ireland of 4 Wing Cold Lake, Alta., will take over the escort duties as Santa makes his way into Western Canada.

Special NORAD SantaCams, positioned around the world, will take photos and video of Santa and his sleigh as he journeys around the world. The SantaCams instantly download the photo and video imagery so that it may be viewed by children worldwide on the NORAD Tracks Santa website, www.noradsanta.org, on December 24. All of this information will be available in English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Spanish, and Chinese.

The Canadian Air Defence Sector Operations Centre at 22 Wing in North Bay, Ont., will alert NORAD when their radar and satellite systems detect Santa approaching North America. Two CF-18 Hornet fighter jets from 3 Wing will welcome Santa as he enters Canadian airspace off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador. As Santa flies across Canada from east to west, two CF-18 Hornets from 4 Wing will escort through Canadian airspace so that he may safely conduct his Christmas voyage.

On December 24, children can also receive updates on Santa’s Christmas Eve journey by calling the traditional “NORAD Tracks Santa” telephone hotline at 1-877-HI NORAD, or by emailing NORAD at noradtrackssanta@gmail.com. Last year, the NORAD Tracks Santa website received over 13 million unique visitors from 231 countries and territories around the world. On Christmas Eve alone, NORAD “Santa Trackers” answered more than 74,000 telephone calls and answered 3,500 emails over a 25 hour period ....

Let's hope our escorts are nicer than these pilots (YouTube) ;D

 

[dapaterson]

Obviously, this topic should be addressed in this thread.

 

[Strike]

One of the pilots is a former Tac Hel guy.  Seems he's doing pretty well for himself if he's being given this honour.

 

[navymich]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RagfQIBqPiI

Here is this year's video from Canadian NORAD.  A bit disappointing this year seeing the General doing all of the talking.  They usually pick some of the junior crew members on the ops floor to talk through all of this which is always a great thrill for them. 

 

[LineJumper]

I had a good laugh hearing the MCpl on the radio in Cold Lake talking about special paint to increase the CF18 performance from 7 Reindeer Power to 8 so they can keep up to Santa.

;D

 

[The Bread Guy]

NAV CANADA's piece of the seasonal messaging action:

A copy of a flight plan filed with NAV CANADA for a cargo flight departing the North Pole has been leaked to the media by an undisclosed source in that far Northern location. (See copy).

According to the plan, the pilot, Captain S. Claus will be flying a bright red sled-like aircraft powered by nine reindeer. Departing on December 24, the flight has many destinations and its route includes stops at the "homes of all the nice children in the world."

NAV CANADA would not confirm the authenticity of the flight plan but anonymous sources say that unusual aircraft will carry a huge cargo of brightly wrapped packages and will fly at a tremendous speed. An intense red light flashes at the aircraft's nose.

Few details are known about the pilot but sources say that he is a very jolly fellow who often stops to snack on milk and cookies while en route.

NAV CANADA would not reveal the identity of the pilot but confirmed reports that he is over 1,000 years old. "Nevertheless, he has excellent vision and superior cognitive skills," said a NAV CANADA spokesman. "In fact, he sees you when you're sleeping and he knows when you're awake."

Rumours are circulating about the true identity of the mysterious Captain Claus, but NAV CANADA remained tight-lipped despite the leaked information.

Said the NAV CANADA spokesperson: "All we can confirm is that a sleigh-like aircraft powered by nine flying reindeer will be departing the North Pole on Christmas Eve to deliver packages all around the world. That could be anyone," he added with a smile.

NAV CANADA will be hard at work on Christmas ensuring that the normal air traffic control, flight information and advisory services, are provided for this special flight and all other aircraft - with technical operations and engineering support - as we do 365 days a year.

NAV CANADA, the country's civil air navigation services provider, is a private sector, non-share capital corporation financed through publicly-traded debt. With operations from coast to coast to coast, NAV CANADA provides air traffic control, flight information, weather briefings, aeronautical information services, airport advisory services and electronic aids to navigation ....

Copy of flight plan attached.

- edited to add following -

Now, the Immigration Minister's getting into the act....

Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney today reaffirmed Santa Claus as a Canadian citizen during a special citizenship ceremony.

“We wish Mr. Claus all the best in his Christmas Eve duties again this year,” said Minister Kenney. “And rest assured, as a Canadian citizen living in Canada’s North, he can re-enter Canada freely once his trip around the world is complete.”

Santa was on hand to reaffirm his citizenship while 100 new citizens from 32 countries were sworn in.

“This is such an important day for Canada’s newest citizens,” said Minister Kenney. “Today, our history also becomes their history, and their future becomes our future. The Canadian story is depicted in the new citizenship guide Discover Canada: The Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship, a valuable learning resource for newcomers and all Canadians.”

The guide focuses on the rights and responsibilities of Canadian citizens, and on Canada’s military, scientific, and artistic achievements; and its symbols, values, and institutions. It also provides information on Canada’s North, where the Government is advancing an integrated Northern Strategy.

“The Government continues to invest in measures that exercise Canada’s sovereignty and create more economic opportunities in the North,” said Minister Kenney. “We want to ensure that Santa and all Northern peoples benefit from the considerable progress that has been made.”

 

[SupersonicMax]

One of the pilots is a former Tac Hel guy.  Seems he's doing pretty well for himself if he's being given this honour.

More a random "chance" than an honour.  It all depends on who's on duty that day.

 

[smale436]

You got that right Max lol. At least it the forecast is only - 5 degrees when they head out to chase Santa. I'll be on "duty" that day as well. Hpoefully it warms up as it was damn cold yesterday! But at least the WCom and WCWO will be getting up early this Saturday to serve us breakfast. Nice morale booster while working on Christmas Day.

 

[Strike]

More a random "chance" than an honour.  It all depends on who's on duty that day.

Yes, however the duty schedule over the holiday is usually worked on a little harder based on who has family visiting, who plans on being away, who has kids, etc, etc and those who give time over that period end up getting it back.

 

[smale436]

That is true to a point. However, on the technician side at least, they had no trouble finding volunteers with the required qualifications as it was stated at our unit no leave pass would be processed until all the various duty lists (about 40 people total) were filled. 85% of the ones who did volunteer did have kids as they realized it is not so bad being away from your kids every second day for most of the day compared to the young single person whose only family is on the opposite side of the country and can only afford to go visit them once a year. I'm single and volunteered to work 17 straight days of duty including Christmas Day as it's more convenient for my leave plan in the new year, but come next year it's someone else's turn. Unfortunately we still have a few "people" who think everyone with kids should never have to take their turn at working over the holidays.

 

[The Bread Guy]

That time of year again....

The North American Aerospace Defense Command is getting ready to track Santa’s yuletide journey! The NORAD Tracks Santa website, www.noradsanta.org, went live today featuring a Countdown Calendar, a Kid’s Countdown Village complete with holiday games and activities that change daily, and video messages from students and troops from around the world. With the addition of Brazilian Portuguese, the website is now available in eight languages: English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Japanese, Brazilian Portuguese, and Chinese.

This year, using free apps in the Apple iTunes Store and in the Android Market, parents and children can countdown the days until Santa’s take off on their smart phones! Tracking opportunities are also offered on Facebook, Google+, YouTube, and Twitter. Santa followers just need to type “@noradsanta” into each search engine to get started.

Also on the website, fans can go to the Operation Good Will page and watch the live stream of the National Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony, presented by the National Park Foundation and National Park Service, on Dec. 1 beginning at 4:30 p.m. EST by clicking on the http://www.thenationaltree.org link.

Starting at midnight MST on Dec. 24, website visitors can watch Santa as he makes all the preparations for his flight. Then, at 4 a.m. MST (6 a.m. EST), trackers worldwide can talk to a live phone operator to inquire about Santa’s whereabouts by dialing the toll-free number 1-877-Hi-NORAD (1-877-446-6723) or by sending an email to noradtrackssanta@gmail.com. NORAD’s “Santa Cams” will also stream videos as Santa makes his way over various locations worldwide ....

NORAD Info-Machine, 1 Dec 11

 

[wildman0101]

COPY Google and GPS ready for track. LOL
Scoty B

 

[navymich]

I get to track Santa this year.  Kind of sucks to work Christmas Eve, but it's exciting (like being a little kid again) to be there too.  And my own kids are super excited too!

 

[The Bread Guy]

I get to track Santa this year.  Kind of sucks to work Christmas Eve, but it's exciting (like being a little kid again) to be there too.  And my own kids are super excited too!

Uh, you are going to make sure this doesn't happen, right? 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ISiTXehKLk

 

[navymich]

I love it!!  I am definitely taking that link to work tomorrow!  And it is just an escort...honestly! :nod:

 

[Strike]

I get to track Santa this year.  Kind of sucks to work Christmas Eve, but it's exciting (like being a little kid again) to be there too.  And my own kids are super excited too!

Awesome!  Think you can PM me your work number?  I can have my niece call you!  Did the same for my nephew several years ago when I had another friend who worked right in the mountain.  Should have seen his face!

 

[medicineman]

I get to track Santa this year.  Kind of sucks to work Christmas Eve, but it's exciting (like being a little kid again) to be there too.  And my own kids are super excited too!

Going to be a TV star then?

 

[navymich]

Going to be a TV star then?

Not this year.  I had my 5 minutes of fame a couple of years back.

Strike, PM inbound.

 

[vonGarvin]

Going to be a TV star then?

Everybody wants to be a TV* star




*TechnoViking, of course  :nod:

 

[wildman0101]

So much for the Zoom and the track... Santa's on a super Booost. Rock on Santa,..
P.S. on my track Santa sreamed right over me... Warp speed you copy track cuase
he's right off my screen???  Scoty B