Air Defense System Deployed Around US Capital

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Tuesday, September 10, 2002

Air Defense System Deployed Around US Capital

The US military deployed ground-based air defenses around Washington Monday for the next few days in an air defense exercise, military officials said.

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The US military deployed ground-based air defenses around Washington Monday for the next few days in an air defense exercise, military officials said.

The exercise is to test the military's ability to respond to an attack from the air, said Lt. Col. Mike Halbig, a Pentagon spokesman.

The exercise, dubbed "Clear Skies," involves about 300 soldiers and strengthens the 24-hour air patrols over Washington with portable ground defenses.

The defenses include Sentinel radar, Avenger air defense systems, and hand-held Stinger missiles set up at various military installations in the area, including the Pentagon.

The Avenger is a portable short-range air defense system mounted on a Humvee vehicle that is capable of firing eight Stinger missiles in rapid succession.

The exercise involves units from the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), the Air Force, the Navy, the Army, the Customs Service, the Federal Aviation Administration and the Secret Service. Jet interceptors and other aircraft will also takepart.

Pentagon officials said this week's exercise, which coincides with the anniversary of last year's terrorist attacks, had been planned several weeks before and was not in response to any specific threat.

The military jets has resumed round-the-clock patrols over New York and Washington since Friday. The Defense Department started the patrols after the Sept. 11 attacks but began phasing them out in April after the improvement of the security situation.

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