Snowbirds set to soar over Lake Erie
Canadian Forces team’s show in Fort Erie a makeup date after cancellation last year
Big crowds are expected in Fort Erie next week to watch 29 tonnes of military hardware rocket across the sky in precise formation.
The Canadian Forces Snowbirds – the world-famous air demonstration squadron – will perform over Lake Erie Wednesday, starting at 4:30 p.m. A public viewing area will be set up along the waterfront, near Lakeshore Road near Beatrice Street.
The Snowbirds – including a member from Niagara, Snowbird 10 coordinator Capt. Blake McNaughton, from St. Catharines – were originally supposed to perform in Fort Erie in 2017.
However, that date was cancelled after a performance error, described by an RCAF spokesman was a “deviation from position,” occurred during a show in Florida.
The Fort Erie date and five others were cancelled and the Snowbirds were put through additional training.
Mayor Wayne Redekop called Wednesday’s date “exciting, not only for Fort Erie but for all of Niagara.”
The Snowbirds, with nine planes in the sky, fly Canadair CT-114 Tutor jets, the kind originally used by the Canadian Forces as a basic pilot training aircraft until 2000. Each plane weighs about 3,260 kg with a maximum speed of 750 km-h.
During the shows, though, the planes’ speed will vary from 185 km-h to 590 km-h. At times, the planes pass within four feet of each other. While there are usually nine planes in each show, the entire Snowbirds show team includes about 24 Canadian Forces personnel. The team got its moniker in a ‘name the team’ contest held for schoolchildren at a Canadian military base in 1971.
For Wednesday’s performance, part of Lakeshore Road will be closed from noon until about an hour after the show ends.