Snowbirds set to soar
Canada’s aerobatics jets to perform Wednesday in skies over Niagara
Airport manager Len O’Connor is a veteran of the aviation industry, but he still catches his breath at the sight of the Snowbirds.
“When I came into work this morning, I just stood there looking at the planes for a couple of minutes parked on the apron and said to myself ‘Wow!’ — and I’ve been doing this for 30 years.
“The guys are the best at what they do. Everywhere I have gone in Niagara for the past couple of weeks, that’s all anybody wanted to talk about. They know I work at the airport.
“Sunday when they flew in, word got out they were coming. Our parking lot was full.”
The Snowbirds — officially known as the Canadian Forces 431 Air Demonstration Squadron — are Canada’s military aerobatics team.
The squadron is based near Moose Jaw, Sask., and is at Niagara District Airport for an airshow Wednesday to coincide with Canada 150 celebrations.
The Snowbirds are expected to begin their 45-minute exhibition of high-flying aerobatics at about 4 p.m. in the skies over the airport at 468 Niagara Stone Rd. The weather forecast calls for partly sunny skies with a temperature of 25°C and a 10 per cent chance of rain.
Parking will be on a first comefirst serve basis, and Carlton Road will close to traffic, bicycles and pedestrians Wednesday from 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m.
O’Connor, who has been at Niagara District Airport since 2011, said he expects a crowd in the range of 3,000 people. There is also a VIP package available. It will cost a donation of $5 cash to get onto the airport grounds.
Everywhere I have gone in Niagara for the past couple weeks, that’s all anybody wanted to talk about. They know I work at the airport.” Len O’Connor, Niagara District Airport manager
“There will be a staging area for the general public,” O’Connor said. “We will also have a VIP centre in Allied Aviation’s hangar. Those tickets are $85. There will be wine. There will be food. With a VIP ticket, you get a chance to meet the Snowbird pilots. The VIP area will open up at 2 p.m. and run until 9 p.m.”
The Snowbirds fly CT-114 Tutors and bring a spare aircraft. The Canadian Forces assigns about 80 personnel to the squadron. O’Connor said about 30 personnel are at the airport in Niagara-onthe-Lake, including the pilots.
“Right now, the planes are all parked on the apron,” he said. “If we have a weather system come through, we will put them into a hangar.
“They have their own security. There are 12 aircraft right here. Each one obviously has a pilot.
They also mechanics. There is a crew that travels with them and helps organize the event and the air boss. We go over everything they need with the air boss. Anything they need, we help them get.”