Armed Fighter Jets, No-Fly Zones and NORAD Bunkers Deployed Over Vancouver and Toronto for World Cup

Fighter jets will patrol over Vancouver and Toronto to protect World Cup match venues and fan festivals while a no-fly zone remains in effect over FIFA sites. Planes and drones are banned from the restricted airspace.

U.S. Air Force Gen. Gregory Guillot told CBC News the deployment is an air patrol overhead to ensure no aircraft with nefarious intent could interfere with the games. He described the operation as very big.

The jets will likely be armed with missiles and machine guns. The World Cup will involve 16 host cities across three countries over two months. U.S. will monitor continental airspace from two secure bunkers during the tournament period.

One bunker is carved inside a mountain in Colorado. The second is buried below ground on Peterson Space Force Base and is home to NORAD. NORAD has existed from 1958 until today as an example of Canadian and American military personnel working in unison.

-Gen. Ian Huddleston, the top Canadian at NORAD, said that in a reactionary situation NORAD would cross each other's borders based on geometry but in a planned event they try to defend themselves. Two Canadian fighter jets will intercept a contracted small jet plane on June 8, forcing it to land at Toronto’s Billy Bishop airport.

The exercise is near Toronto Stadium where six matches will be played. Andrea Charron, director of the Centre for Defence and Security Studies at the University of Manitoba, said Canadians should not be alarmed if they see Canadian Armed Forces aircraft over Vancouver or Toronto and that NORAD will continue its ongoing missions.

The Canadian Armed Forces has installed a temporary air surveillance radar in Grimsby, Ont.

The RCMP is responsible for detecting and if necessary downing drones over the venues. The RCMP said flying drones near stadiums and event sites is prohibited and subject to enforcement. Steve Armstrong, NORAD's operations chief, and Col.

Matt Snider, the chief of air operations at NORAD, described procedures that begin with radio contact and can escalate to fighter jet intercepts. U.S. president or Canadian prime minister depending on whose airspace is impacted.