Arecognized air picture orRAP is a (theoretically) complete listing of allaircraft in flight within a particularairspace, with each aircraftbeing identified as friendly or hostile, and ideally containing additional information such as type of aircraft,flight number, andflight plan. The information may be drawn from a number of different sources, includingmilitaryradar,civilianair traffic controllers, andallied nations or multi-national organizations such asNATO.
For theUnited States andCanada, the Recognized Air Picture is maintained continuously byNORAD atPeterson Air Force Base (withCheyenne Mountain Complex as a warm standby).[1] In theUnited Kingdom, it is maintained by theUnited Kingdom Combined Air Operations Centre atRAF Air Command atRAF High Wycombe.[2] For the rest ofEurope, NATO has anAir Command and Control System program underway to unify the various systems in use by NATO members throughout Europe.