U.S. Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcons assigned to the 120th Fighter Squadron, Buckley Space Force Base, Colorado, prepare for takeoff June 14, 2021 at Thule Air Base, Greenland. Exercise Amalgam Dart will run from June 10-19, 2021, with operations ranging across the Arctic from the Beaufort Sea to Thule, Greenland. Amalgam Dart 21-01 provides NORAD the opportunity to hone continental defense skills as Canadian and U.S. forces operate together in the Arctic. A bi-national Canadian and American command, NORAD employs a network of space-based aerial and ground-based sensors, air-to-air refueling tankers, and fighter aircraft, controlled by a sophisticated command and control network to deter, deny and defeat aerospace threats that originate outside or within our borders. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Airman Basic Mira Roman)