U.S., Mexican air force take part in border exercise

By Daniel Borunda / El Paso Times / POSTED: 07/01/2015 10:45:03 PM MDT

The U.S. and Mexico are currently taking part in an air defense exercise testing binational response to aircraft illegally crossing the border, the North American Aerospace Defense Command said.

The tactical exercise named Amalgam Eagle 15 began Tuesday and continues through today, NORAD said in a news release.

The drill includes flights of detection and interception aircraft, observers at airports in Chihuahua City and Monterrey, and testing communication channels between both countries. The training does not include military units or intercepting aircraft crossing the border of either country, NORAD said.

The training practice will "refine procedures to monitor, track and coordinate a response to an illegal flight transiting the U.S./Mexico border," NORAD said in a news release.

The exercise includes NORAD, U.S. Northern Command, the Federal Aviation Administration, Transportation Security Administration, the Mexican air force and Mexican civil and federal aviation agencies.

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