Impressive group of Allied and Partner experts convened at Allied Air Command for a meeting of the Air and Missile Defence Committee, NATO’s senior policy advisory and coordinating board on Air and Space matters. Photo by Sébastien Raffin
RAMSTEIN, Germany – The Air and Missile Defence Committee (AMDC), NATO’s senior policy advisory and coordinating body on NATO’s Integrated Air and Missile Defence (IAMD), Air Command and Control and Air and Space matters, met at Headquarters Allied Air Command for their second meeting in 2017 on 21 and 22 November, 2017. The plenary session of Allies was preceded by a meeting together with Partner Nations in the morning of the 21st.
General Tod D. Wolters, Commander Allied Air Command, welcomed almost 90 representatives from Allied and Partner Nations, stating, “We embrace this occasion to host the Air and Missile Defence Committee to showcase AIRCOM’s Air and Space capabilities that contribute to defence and deterrence across the Alliance. In many areas these contributions mirror the policy and advice the committee generates to further increase capabilities, coordination and interoperability.”
General Wolters and his team presented operational updates on NATO Command Structure Adaptation, Air Command and Control and the 24/7 mission of NATO Air Policing and Ballistic Missile Defence. The programme also included a visit to the Command’s Air Command and Control Facility.
In the format of 29 NATO members, the AMDC convened to further deepen their dialogue on air-specific matters such as routine updates on Joint Air Power, NATO Air Policing and NATO’s Support to Turkey with Allied Missile Defence Batteries.
“We gladly accepted the offer by Allied Air Command to meet here at Ramstein,” said Major General Bernhardt Schlaak, Vice Chairman of the Committee. “The venue has been ideal for our talks to develop advice and recommendations to the North Atlantic Council on a number of Joint Air Power and IAMD issues. Moreover, meeting at HQ AIRCOM offered a welcome opportunity to get first-hand impressions of how our policy work is put into practice here at the Alliance’s Air Command. We are very grateful to General Wolters and his staff for hosting us.”