During the symposium, 25 NATO Air Chiefs or their representatives and four Partner Air Chiefs attended the session in person. Another three Allied Air Chiefs and one Partner Air Chief joined via video link. They were joined by representatives from NATO's Command Structure and senior US Air Force leaders.
These face-to-face interactions build trust and rapport between the Alliance and Partner air chiefs. The result is a shared vision of air power in the Alliance and across NATO and our Partner nations, which allows us to act at speed in order to posture the Alliance to provide collective defence and security into the future
"For the second time this year, we are gathering to strengthen our relationships, align our efforts and continue to improve communication among the Air and Space Power community," said General Jeff Harrigian, Commander of Allied Air Command. "These face-to-face interactions build trust and rapport between the Alliance and Partner air chiefs. The result is a shared vision of air power in the Alliance and across NATO and our Partner nations, which allows us to act at speed in order to posture the Alliance to provide collective defence and security into the future," he added.
After welcoming all participants, General Harrigian set the stage by providing the strategic context laying out the ongoing work of Allied Air Command and NATO's deterrence and defence of the Euro-Atlantic area. He then gave an update points raised during the last meeting in March covering topics like training objectives in NATO exercises, Air Command and Control, Strategic Communication and Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance activities.
"The global environment is changing and the emerging complexities remind us that we can't do this alone," said General CQ Brown, Jr., Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force. "We are strongest when we interoperate together and innovate with our allies and partners. By building close, personal relationships between our Air Forces and our service people, we will succeed in preserving peace and upholding the rule of law."
Presentations to the audience included the Royal Air Force's national perspective on Space, updates on the intelligence situation, Integrated Air and Missile Defence, improved training opportunities in Allied exercises; cooperation with the European Organisation for the Safety of Air Navigation (Eurocontrol). In separate meetings, Allied Air Command Senior Enlisted Leader, Warrant Officer Sara Catterall, and her counterparts from Allied and Partner organisations conducted their exchange about ways to further empower and enable the NATO Air and Space Power enlisted personnel.
Allied Air Command has conducted NATO Air Chiefs' Symposiums for more than 40 years. The goal has been and still is to bring Allied and Partner leaders together and facilitate true interaction and productive coordination of the Air and Space Power sector.