CAF Snowbirds ready to take off for the 2016 season!

See full schedule at the bottom of the article!

The CAF Snowbirds is days away from awing and inspiring crowds across North America during the 2016 season, which debuts on May 7 and 8 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

“The team is excited for the upcoming season. The pilots and technicians have been working extremely hard throughout the winter to ensure the aircraft are in good working condition and to bring an exciting show to our spectators across North America. And as always it is a privilege to represent the men and women who serve in all branches of the Canadian Armed Forces,” said Lt Patricia Brunelle, Public Affairs Officer for 431 Air Demonstration Squadron.

Currently, the Air Demonstration Team is at 19 Wing Comox, wrapping up their Spring Training. They will perform their first show on April 29th for friends and family at Moose Jaw. Then the team will head down to the U.S. for their first official air show of the season.

In their 46th season, the Snowbirds will be performing in 35 cities across North America, travelling as far south as Florida and as far north as Yellowknife, Northwest Territories.

The CAF Snowbirds, also known as 431 Air Demonstration Squadron, serve as ambassadors of Canada as they travel from coast-to-coast demonstrating the RCAF’s skills, professionalism, and teamwork.

This year the Snowbirds will be performing a fast-paced 30-minute show.

“The crowd can expect to see exciting nine plane loops and rolls and heart-stopping solo crosses. The highlight of every season is having the opportunity to speak to Canadians from across the country and representing the men and women of all branches of the Canadian Armed Forces,” noted Brunelle.

This year the 431 Air Demonstration Squadron is celebrating the 75th anniversary of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP). To commemorate the BCATP, the team has planned a manoeuvre called the Commonwealth Split, which entails nine aircrafts executing two splits, five aircrafts split first and then the final four split second.

The team is also working on incorporating music from this time period into the show, and its brochures feature aircrafts and the yellow colour scheme used during the Second World War.

The BCATP was a crucial air campaign strategy during the Second World War. The program was a joint effort between airmen and women of Canada, the U.K., Australia, and New Zealand. The program ran from 1940-1945, and it was considered one of Canada’s most significant contributions to the Allied effort in the Second World War.

By the end of the War, the plan had graduated 131,553 aircrew, including pilots, wireless operators, air gunners and navigators for the Air Forces of the participating countries.

For a complete schedule of the 2016 Snowbirds keep scrolling: