A military flight demonstration team from the Royal Canadian Air Force will headline a series of events at an air show in Columbus.
The Canadian Forces Snowbirds, a squadron with a traveling show team of 24 Canadian military personnel, will perform Sept. 18 at Columbus Municipal Airport, 4770 Ray Boll Blvd.
The event, called Birds & Brews, will be held from 4 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. and is free and open to the public. Besides the Snowbirds, there will be a U.S. military flight demonstration, parachute jump from a C-130 aircraft, children’s activities, a beergarden featuring a special Canadian-style beer from ZwanzigZ, among other activities.
“We’re excited about being able to host these guys,” said Brian Payne, Columbus Municipal Airport director. “Certainly, it’s the most interesting thing that’s going to be happening on a Wednesday night in Columbus, Indiana.”
Payne said he and his team were left scrambling earlier this year to find an alternative plan for the city’s annual air show after another air show in Indiana was scheduled on the same day and made the Columbus air show’s support staff unavailable.
“We traditionally hold our aviation day in June,” he said. “Unfortunately, the Fort Wayne air show happened on same day.”
However, the Columbus air show’s longtime announcer, Luke Carrico, who announces several air shows across the country, had worked with the Snowbirds in the past and knew that they had potential openings for performances in the middle of the week.
“I know it’s an odd time and odd date, but it’s the only thing they had available,” Payne said.
Based in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada, the Snowbirds typically perform in nine Canadair CT-114 Tutor aircrafts, which were used by the Canadian military as a pilot-training aircrafts from 1963 to 2000.
The aircraft are approximately 31.9 feet long, 9.3 feet tall and have a wingspan of 36.5 feet. During a performance, the Snowbirds typically fly at speeds ranging from 115 miles per hour to 370 miles per hour.
Columbus is one of 11 U.S. cities that will host the Snowbirds this year.
[sc:pullout-title pullout-title=”About the Snowbirds” ][sc:pullout-text-begin]
Based in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada, the Canadian Forces Snowbirds is a military flight demonstration team from the Royal Canadian Air Force.
The team typically performs in nine Canadair CT-114 Tutor aircrafts, which were used by the Canadian military as a pilot-training aircrafts from 1963 to 2000, according to the Royal Canadian Air Force’s website.
Visit www.rcaf-arc.forces.gc.ca/en/snowbirds/index.page for more information.
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