NORAD prepares to track Santa

NORTH BAY - It’s only December 9, but the Bravo Flight crew in the Sgt. David L. Pitcher Building at CFB North Bay is preparing for arguably the most important mission of the year.  

You see the 21 Aerospace Control and Warning Squadron is training for December 24, when they will play a huge role in assisting and escorting Santa Claus across Canadian airspace.  

Captain Pierre Grignon will be part of that crew working on Christmas eve. 

“What we do is we escort Santa as he is coming through Canada, we make sure he is safe,” said Grignon after his training session on Wednesday morning. 

“The good thing about Santa is that he enjoys the pilot’s coming alongside as he’s a pilot himself he really enjoys the interaction with the fighters. So he actually helps us out because he slows down quite a bit so that we can actually intercept him or come up beside him and escort him through Canada.”   

Officials at NORAD state that traditionally Santa Claus does not use a flight plan and arrives coming over the East Coast of Canada.  Pilots will be scrambled and sent from CFB Bagotville as part of the escort.  

Major Darrin Reck will be in charge on Christmas eve.  He says it’s an honour to be part of the crew and continue the tradition of tracking Santa which first began back in 1955.  

“Sixty years is a long time and it is an important milestone in the event and we are certainly pleased to be a part of the process,” said Reck. 

Anyone interested in tracking Santa’s journey on Christmas eve can do so by going to the NORAD website at: www.noradsanta.org

(PHOTO: Captain Pierre Grignon completes his Santa tracking simulation as he and his crew prepare for the real thing on Christmas Eve. Photo by Lindsay Sarazin)