The Royal Saudi Air Defense Forces Announce First Official International Symposium on Air Defense 2020+ for April 2011

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia & LONDON - Tuesday, January 25th 2011 [ME NewsWire]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The Royal Saudi Air Defense Forces (RSADF) are proud to announce theInternational Symposium on Air Defense 2020+(ISAD2020+), the first ever official international Saudi Arabian defense symposium. Taking place at the Air Defense Forces Institute, Jeddah, between the 17th and 20th April 2011, the event is being held under the patronage of His Royal Highness Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and Aviation, and Inspector General of The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

A world first in air and missile defense, ISAD2020+ boasts attendance from over 150 RSADF officers, senior representatives from the Royal Saudi Air Force, Navy, Land Forces and National Guard, as well as honored guests from both Middle Eastern and international military forces. Over four days the symposium will encompass more than 50 keynote presentations and panel discussions from some of the leading international military figuresin air and missile defense, including:

* His Royal Highness Prince Khalid bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz, Assistant Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General for Military Affairs
* Lieutenant General Abdul Latif Rashid Al Zayani, Secretary General, The Gulf Cooperation Council
* General James Mattis, Commander of US Central Command (US CENTCOM)
* Air Chief Marshal Simon Bryant, Commander in Chief of the UK Royal Air Force Air Command
* Lieutenant General Patrick O'Reilly, Commander of the US Missile Defense Agency
* Lieutenant General Mike Hostage, Commander of US Air Forces Central
* Lieutenant General Gilles Desclaux, Commander of the Commandement de la Défense Aérienne et des Opérations Aériennes, French Air Force
* Lieutenant General Patrick Auroy, Assistant Secretary General, NATO Defense Investment, and Director, NATO Conference of National Armaments Directors
* Lieutenant General Ram Pratap, AVSM, VSM, Director General of Army Air Defence, Indian Army

Providing in-depth analysis on topics including the development of ballistic missile threats, multi-tiered missile defense architectures, C4I and radar integration, air defense training and education strategies, tactics for missile defense operations and the future requirements for GBAD requirements both in theatre conflicts and MOOTW, ISAD2020+ covers the key issues facing air and missile defense from now to 2020 and beyond.

At a time when missile defense technologies are developing hand in hand with a drive for procurement and integration strategies, ISAD2020+ looks to provide the forum which will shape the future of air and missile defense, and the means to establish cooperation and knowledge-sharing on a very real scale.

Confirmed industry partnersinclude MBDA, Thales, Rheinmetall Defence and Saudi Ericsson.

Further information on the International Symposium on Air Defense 2020+ (ISAD2020+) is available online at www.isad2020.org.sa.

Defense IQis host to a series of global events and runs an online community of military and private sector professionals. We are dedicated to providing military personnel and the private sector with strategic defense resources covering current defense issues. www.defenseiq.com

###
Contacts

IQPC

Duraid Jalili

+44 207 7368 9528

duraid.jalili@iqpc.co.uk