The Snowbirds' last Tutor flypast: a farewell over the Grey Cup in Calgary

Nine little red-and-white jets came over Calgary one last time on Sunday, November 15. The Canadian Forces Snowbirds flew over McMahon Stadium as the national anthem ended at the 113th Grey Cup, the final scheduled public show for the CT-114 Tutor, the only plane the team has ever flown.

For a lot of Canadians, that sound overhead is part of growing up. It's the end of an era, and it deserves a proper goodbye.

The last flypast

The plan, as laid out by The Canadian Press: nine Snowbirds took off from Calgary International Airport, timed their pass to come right as Sarah McLachlan finished singing "O Canada," and swept over the stadium as low as about 150 metres, their minimum height, before heading back to the airport. The Montreal Alouettes and Edmonton Elks then kicked off the CFL championship game, just after 4 p.m. Mountain time (6 p.m. Eastern).

Plenty of Calgarians planned to watch from outside the stadium too; The Weather Network even published a list of the best spots in the city to wave goodbye.

"It is Canada's demonstration team," Capt. Marc-André Plante, who flies as Snowbird 8, told The Canadian Press before the flight. He said the Grey Cup "would be our last" invited public show with the Tutors.

On Monday the squadron flies home to 15 Wing Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, its base for half a century, and may add a flyover there too.

Fifty-five years of the Tutor

The Snowbirds have been flying for more than half a century, and they've never flown anything but the Tutor. Over that time the team has performed roughly 2,700 shows for more than 140 million people across North America, according to The Canadian Press.

The Tutor is a small, two-seat jet trainer built in Canada. It isn't fast or flashy by modern standards, and that was always part of the charm. The Snowbirds didn't win crowds with speed or noise. They won them with tight, graceful formations, nine planes flying a few feet apart, smoke trails drawing loops and hearts across the sky.

Ask almost anyone who grew up in Canada and they'll remember seeing them at least once: at a summer air show, over a lake, at a Canada Day celebration, or roaring low over a small town on the way to the next show. They became one of the country's best-known symbols, right up there with the Mounties.

Why they're stopping

The Tutors are old. The aircraft are being retired at the end of this year, and the federal government says the team will be grounded until the early 2030s while a replacement comes in. The new plane will be the CT-157 Siskin II, a newer trainer jet. There's no firm date yet for when the Snowbirds will be back in the air with it.

That's a long gap. A whole group of kids will grow up without seeing them. It's fair to hope Ottawa keeps that gap as short as it safely can.

Keeping the team flying has never been free, and with any military program people reasonably ask what it costs and what it brings. The Snowbirds' answer has always been the same: they help recruit pilots, they show off the skill of the Royal Canadian Air Force, and they make people proud. Fifty-five years of full crowds suggests Canadians agree.

Remembering the crews

The team's history isn't only celebration. Over the years the Snowbirds lost pilots and crew members in accidents, most recently Capt. Jennifer Casey, the team's public affairs officer, who died in a crash in Kamloops, B.C., in May 2020 during Operation Inspiration, a cross-country tour to lift spirits during the pandemic. Any farewell to the Tutor era should include them.

What it means for you

If you missed today, there's no more Tutor show to catch, but you can still watch the jets land in Moose Jaw on Monday, if the weather cooperates, or see them later in museums once they're retired. And if you have photos or videos of a Snowbirds show from your own childhood, now's a good time to dig them out and share them with your kids. It'll be a while before they get to see it for themselves.

What to watch next

• The Snowbirds' flight home to Moose Jaw on Monday.
• Where the retired Tutors end up, including museums and memorials.
• A firm timeline for the team's return with the CT-157 Siskin II.

Thank you, Snowbirds, and thank you to every pilot, technician and crew member who kept those Tutors in the air for 55 years.