The United States and Canada created NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) during the Cold War to safeguard North American airspace. A wrong number (a child was trying to reach Santa Claus) led to a special mission each Christmas night. NORAD also continues to safeguard our airspace, collect environmental information, and perform various other tasks, including helping to address the influx of illegal drugs.
Origins of Santa Claus
Nicholas was a Christian monk born around the year 300 in modern-day Turkey.
Many people respected his piety and kindness. Saint Nicholas (Santa Claus) became a subject of legend. His feast day (December 6) became extremely popular in Europe. Anne Frank, in her diary, wrote about celebrating St. Nicholas Day. You didn’t have to be a Christian to do so.
Santa Claus became a popular American symbol of Christmas in the 19th Century, particularly thanks to a famous poem about his famed Christmas Eve ride. The trip, involving a magical sled and eight special reindeer, starts in the North Pole. I do not know if he has an exact route.
Nonetheless, it would not surprise me if he soon passes over Canadian airspace.
World War II
The United States and Canada established the Permanent Joint Board on Defense (PJBD) in 1940. The PJBD (not to be confused with the PBJB or the Peanut Butter and Jelly Board) is an advisory board for continental military defense. It continues to meet today.
German submarines and the Luftwaffe menaced Western Europe and the North Atlantic. Japan threatened Alaska. The United States built or used existing airfields in Alaska, Canada, Iceland, and Greenland in response, including to help support the Allies in Europe.
A Cold War followed the end of World War II. The nuclear weapons that helped defeat Japan were now also in the hands of the Soviet Union, a new superpower.
The PJBD had a new enemy to worry about. The PBJB continued as before.
NORAD is Formed
The use of radio waves to assist in aviation was already in the early stages during World War I.
Radar technology was used during World War II to discover the location of enemy aircraft.
A “radar net” protected the United States and Canada. The PJBD in 1951 recommended an improvement that would combine the warning systems protecting Canada and the U.S. and permanently address the air defense needs of both countries. The two governments agreed.
This decision ultimately led to the formation of NORAD (North American Air Defense Command), which began operations in September 1957. It was officially recognized as a joint bi-national command by the United States and Canada in May 1958.
Both countries need to agree when NORAD formally acts.
NORAD Basics
NORAD was originally located in Ent Air Force Base in Colorado Springs.
Command operations were later moved to an underground bunker in Cheyenne Mountain. Its home base was later moved to nearby Peterson Air Force Base.
NORAD proclaims that its mission “includes the detection, validation, and warning of attack against North America whether by aircraft, missiles, or space vehicles.”
A banner reading “We Have the Watch” is in the control room. It reminds everyone to vigilantly track all planes that enter North American airspace and ensure air traffic safety.
NORAD became the North American Aerospace Defense Command in 1981. The name change signified the new emphasis on defense and warning against cruise missiles.
The end of the Cold War helped to expand its duties. NORAD played a role in the war on drugs. It also collects information about the Earth’s atmosphere and coastal waters.
The terrorist attacks on 9/11/2001 suggest the limitations of its traditional missions. NORAD looked outward for incoming threats. The terrorists used U.S. planes to attack from within. NORAD established Operation NOBLE EAGLE to address threats from within.
NORAD continues to keep watch over major international nuclear threats like North Korea, Russia, and China. It continues to vigilantly watch over the skies.
Protecting Santa Claus
Dwight Eisenhower was the Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force during World War II. His command center put out a special Christmas press release regarding a new North Pole Command. Santa Claus was directing operations with a small army of gnomes.
The United States continued its northerly focus in the early years of the Cold War. The U.S. State Department dispatched a diplomatic cable to Santa Claus, communicating an “united desire for peace on earth,” and welcoming him to spread the word with “herald angels.”
Colonel Harry Shoup of Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD) picked up the phone one day in 1955. NORAD had not begun operations.
A young child misdialed the number, attempting to reach a local Santa Claus hotline. Different accounts arose regarding what exactly happened next.
Did he gruffily say, “There may be a guy named Santa Claus at the North Pole, but he’s not the one I worry about coming from that direction”? Or was he more polite, promising that CONAD would ensure Santa Claus would have a safe ride? The tale improved over the years, including references to secure “red” phones and other colorful touches.
Santa Tracking is Born
Either way, a formal Santa Claus tracking system was soon announced. One year, Santa Claus reportedly made an emergency landing in Hudson Bay, Canada. A reindeer had an injured foot.
Each year, the website receives millions of visitors. Volunteers field more than a hundred thousand calls to the NORAD Tracks Santa hotline from children around the globe.
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (so I’m told) is the point person at the North Pole. He has special tracking skills, especially in bad weather. He’s in the history books and everything.