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CNN Live At Daybreak

What is a Stage 4 DEFCON Alert?

Aired November 14, 2001 - 07:56   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANNOUNCER: Scott Sperry from Alpharetta, Georgia, asks: What is a Stage 4 DEFCON alert? What are the other stages of alert?

MAJ. GEN. DON SHEPPERD (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: In the event of a national emergency, there are seven different alert conditions, separated into five defense conditions, called DEFCONs for short, and two emergency conditions, called EMERGCONs for short.

Normal peacetime readiness is DEFCON 5. When September 11 occurred, the U.S. forces were put on DEFCON 4, which means increased readiness, and you review your alert rosters, you put more guards on the gate, you deny access to certain things. And then, it can be stepped up all the way to DEFCON 1, which is wartime conditions.

And once in our history, we have gone to DEFCON 2. That was during the Cuban missile crisis, when the strategic alert command was put on alert, and even had their airplanes airborne.

Now, the two emergency conditions are defense emergency and the air defense emergency. Now, the defense emergency means that U.S. or allied forces have come under attack anywhere in the world. It's missiles in the air, if you will, all designed around the nuclear missile threat. The air defense emergency means the United States, Canada or U.S. forces in Greenland have come under attack.

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