The Canadair CT-114 Tutor has been a jet trainer that entered service in the Royal Canadian Air Force, then with the Canadian Forces in the 1960s.
The Tutor is the jet used by the Snowbirds Demonstration team, the 431 Air Demonstration Squadron, ever since the formation of the team. They use them to put on one heckuva stunning, nine-jet strong, demonstration of skilled acrobatic and formation precision flying.
Until now.
The last airshow featuring the Canadian Forces Snowbirds flying the CT-114 took this past weekend at the California Capital Air Show.
It is the end of an era.
The Tutors are being retired due to age, and the Snowbirds are standing down, ending their era of flying jets.
The jets will be replaced by CT-157 Siskin (Pilatus PC-21) prop trainers.
The Snowbirds will not be fully re-equipped and returning to the air show circuit until at least 2030.
3 comments:
Sad to hear about the Snowbirds. Great shows the performed. Further evidence of Cananda's decline and that is truely sad.
That is a sad ending for a great team! But there is no way the Canucks can afford to put the CF-18s forward for the team.
WSF: Yep, its sad that they're losing the jets after all this time and don't have a replacement ready to go yet.
Old NFO: The CF-18s are pretty clapped out as well, but giving them to the Snowbirds once they get the F-35s (or the Grippen, a far less capable aircraft if the Liberals and politics keeps playing a role) might be a decent idea. But you're right that they likely can't afford the maintenance on them.
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