With only four days before Christmas, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado Springs, Colo., is busy getting ready to guide and track Santa safely to homes around the world on Christmas Eve.
NORAD and its predecessor, the Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD) have tracked Santa’s flight for nearly seven decades.
The story goes that, in 1955, a Colorado-Springs-based Sears Roebuck & Co. advertisement for children to call Santa misprinted the telephone number. Instead of reaching Santa, the phone number put kids through to the CONAD Commander-in-Chief’s operations “hotline.” The Director of Operations at the time, Colonel Harry Shoup, had his staff check the radar for indications of Santa making his way south from the North Pole. Children who called were given updates on his location, and the tradition was born.
Since that time, NORAD men, women, family and friends have selflessly volunteered their time to personally respond to phone calls and emails from children all around the world. In addition, NORAD now tracks Santa using the internet. Millions of people who want to know Santa’s whereabouts now visit the NORAD Tracks Santa website ln Christmas eve to track Santa’s flight around the world.
While back in the 50s Santa traveled at relatively moderate speeds, it is reported that Santa’s sleigh can now travel “at an astonishing 1,800 miles per second.” That’s considerably faster than U.S. Air Force F-22 jets, according to the report.
However, NORAD’s technology has also made significant advances during the same period and NORAD is certain that it will be able to detect, identify, track and guide Santa to its billions of destinations.
NORAD is not the only military organization that is helping to make Christmas happy for children (and adults) around the world.
For even longer than “Operation Santa,” the Department of Defense (DoD)has been conducting “Operation Christmas Drop,” DoD’s longest-running humanitarian airlift operation.
According to the U.S. Air Force:
The tradition began during the Christmas season in 1952 when a B-29 Superfortress aircrew saw islanders waving at them from the island of Kapingamarangi, 3,500 miles southwest of Hawaii. In the spirit of Christmas the aircrew dropped a bundle of supplies attached to a parachute to the islanders below, giving the operation its name.
The humanitarian mission has grown over the years to include more than 50 islands throughout the Pacific and, this year, several partner nation air forces participated in “delivering 209 bundles of supplies weighing a total of more than 75,000 pounds to 57 locations in the Federated States of Micronesia and Republic of Palau.”
The bundles dropped by seven C-130 Hercules aircraft contain food, supplies, educational materials, and toys.
Months leading up to the “Christmas drop,” volunteer Airmen, Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, civilians, contractors and families raise money, assist in picking up and sorting the donations, and build boxes to hold the donations.
The Christmas spirit is evident in every military branch, command, squadron and individual – too numerous to list.
For example, in a tradition that goes back 53 years, the Salvation Army and Alaska Air National Guard have partnered to bring holiday cheer to native, rural communities throughout Alaska. After a two-year pause, due to the pandemic, a C-130 aircraft loaded with Santa and Mrs. Claus (below), three dozen helper elves, a Guard six-piece band, and 1,420 pounds of gifts took off from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson on a 600+ mile flight straight North to frigid, remote Nuiqsut on the North Slope to bring Christmas joy to its 191 children.
At the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, Midshipmen have taken part for 32 years in the annual “Giving Tree” tradition of gathering and distributing toys for 500 local kids.
Watch the video below.
May the spirit of Christmas be with all our readers and wishing them health, happiness and peace in the New Year.
