New NORAD-US NORTHCOM Commander to Speak at 2010 NATIONAL SYMPOSIUM on Homeland Security and Defense

June 1, 2010 - PRLog -- Admiral  James A. Winnefeld, Jr., Commander of NORAD and US Northern Command, will be the closing speaker at this year’s NATIONAL SYMPOSIUM on Homeland Security and Defense, Oct. 27-29.

Admiral Winnefeld assumed command of NORAD/US NORTHCOM on May 19, 2010.  He will speak at the closing of the symposium on Oct. 29.

Admiral Winnefeld graduated from the Georgia Institute of Technology and received his commission from the Navy Reserve Officer Training Corps program. He subsequently served with three fighter squadrons flying the F-14 Tomcat and as an instructor at the Navy Fighter Weapons School.

Admiral Winnefeld’s unit commands at sea include Fighter Squadron 211, USS Cleveland (LPD 7), and USS Enterprise (CVN 65). He led “Big E” through her 18th deployment, which included combat operations in Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom immediately after the terrorist acts of Sept. 11, 2001. As Commander, Carrier Strike Group TWO/Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group, he led Task Forces 50, 152, and 58 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and maritime interception operations in the Arabian Gulf. His most recent command tour was as Commander, United States SIXTH Fleet, Commander NATO Allied Joint Command Lisbon, and Commander Striking and Support Forces NATO.

His shore tours include service in the Joint Staff Operations Directorate (J-3), as Senior Aide to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and as Executive Assistant to the Vice Chief of Naval Operations. As a flag officer he served ashore as director, Warfare Programs and Transformational Concepts, United States Fleet Forces Command and as Director of Joint Innovation and Experimentation at United States Joint Forces Command. He most recently served as the Director for Strategic Plans and Policy (J-5) on the Joint Staff.

The NATIONAL SYMPOSIUM on Homeland Security and Defense is the leading public forum on homeland security and homeland defense.  The 2010 symposium is the eighth annual conference organized by the National Homeland Defense Foundation.   The symposium features international experts discussing the latest research, operations and policies affecting homeland security and defense.

Watch the NHDF web site at http://www.nhdf.org for more information about the symposium, including updates on speakers and panelists.

# # #

NHDF was founded in 2004 as a non-partisan, nonprofit forum and rallying point for our country's response to the presence of terrorism tactics, and preparing and responding to natural disasters around the world.