The annual Space and Missile Defense Symposium concluded today with remarks from NORAD’s second-in-command Lt. Gen. Joseph Jarrard and director of the Missile Defense Agency Lt. Gen. Heath Collins.
Senior military leaders closed the event
The final-day remarks were delivered by two senior leaders explicitly named in the program: Lt. Gen. Joseph Jarrard, identified in the coverage as NORAD’s second-in-command, and Lt. Gen. Heath Collins, director of the Missile Defense Agency. Their presence bookended a three-day convening that included scheduled keynote remarks earlier in the week and a broad exhibition floor of sensors, munitions, and prototypes.
Keynotes and high-profile attendees: Rafferty, Guetlein, Karbler
On Aug. 11 Lt. Gen. John Rafferty, commanding general of US Army Space and Missile Defense Command, delivered the symposium's keynote address. Photographs from the event show attendees listening during that keynote. The coverage also documents an on-site exchange between Golden Dome czar Gen. Mike Guetlein and retired Army Lt. Gen. Dan Karbler on Aug. 11, underscoring a lineup of senior uniformed and retired leaders at the Huntsville gathering.
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See what we buildInterceptors and layered defenses on the show floor
The exposition displayed multiple interceptors and sensors described in the coverage. Raytheon exhibited the LTAMDS Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor alongside Raytheon's SM-3 Interceptor. Northrop Grumman displayed its Glide Phase Interceptor (GPI), which the caption describes as intended for layered defense against regional hypersonic missile threats. Lockheed Martin presented a PAC-3 missile above a THAAD missile in photographs taken at the symposium. The imagery documented both theater- and regional-focused systems arrayed together on the floor.
Munitions, counter‑UAS, and directed‑energy effects
In addition to interceptors, the show floor included a range of munitions and counter-measures. L3Harris’s Red Wolf munition, Boeing’s Small Diameter Bomb, and AV’s SB400 and SB600 were photographed on display. AV also exhibited a Titan 4 RF Counter-Unmanned Aerial System. Radiance Technologies displayed a high-power microwave sensor. On the lighter side of the floor, Huntsville’s Browncoats robotics team presented “Vera,” a mechanical challenge robot that shoots plastic balls, and a caricature artist worked a booth at MFGS’s stand.
Presence of hypersonic hardware and classified variants on display
Photographs captured a US Common Hypersonic Glide Body at the symposium and the Northrop Grumman Glide Phase Interceptor intended to counter glide‑phase threats. The simultaneous display of a U.S. glide body and an interceptor designed for glide‑phase engagement highlights the specific set of technologies that appeared together on the expo floor during the event.
What this means for NORAD, the Missile Defense Agency, and defense contractors
- NORAD: The attendance and closing remarks by NORAD’s second-in-command indicate a direct senior‑leader engagement with symposium participants and exhibited systems.
- Missile Defense Agency: The director’s presence to close the symposium places the agency in a visible role alongside the interceptors, sensors, and hypersonic-related displays that populated the show floor.
- Defense contractors and exhibitors (Raytheon, Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin, L3Harris, Boeing, AV, Radiance Technologies): Multiple vendors displayed interceptors, sensors, munitions, counter‑UAS solutions, and directed‑energy sensors, documenting a broad vendor portfolio on view to military and industry attendees.
The photographs and captions assembled from the final day capture a trade show where leadership remarks and a dense set of hardware displays intersected: senior military remarks framed the event, and the exhibit hall put a range of interceptors, munitions, counter‑UAS systems, and experimental hardware in front of attendees. For readers who want to see the imagery and the lineup of systems in full, Breaking Defense’s extended coverage includes the show‑floor photos and event reporting linked below.
https://breakingdefense.com/2026/08/day-3-of-the-2026-space-and-missile-defense-symposium/
