The Snowbirds, officially known as 431 Air Demonstration Squadron, are the military aerobatics or air show flight demonstration team of the Royal Canadian Air Force. The team is based at 15 Wing Moose Jaw near Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. The Snowbirds' official purpose is to "demonstrate the skill, professionalism, and teamwork of Canadian Forces personnel". The Snowbirds are the first Canadian air demonstration team to be designated as a squadron.

The show team flies 11 CT-114 Tutors—nine for aerobatic performances, including two solo aircraft, and two as spares, flown by the team coordinators. Approximately 80 Canadian Forces personnel work with the squadron full-time; 24 personnel are in the show team that travels during the show season. The Snowbirds are the only major military aerobatics team that operates without a support aircraft.

The Snowbirds continue the flying demonstration tradition of previous Canadian air force aerobatic teams, which include the Siskins, the Blue Devils, the Golden Hawks, and the Golden Centennaires.



Although 431 Air Demonstration Squadron was formed in 1978, its history truly begins during the Second World War when, as part of the Commonwealth contribution to aircrew for the war in Europe, 431 Squadron Royal Canadian Air Force was created under the control of RAF Bomber Command.

Number 431 Squadron formed on 11 November 1942, at RAF Burn, flying Wellington B.X medium bombers with No. 4 Group RAF Bomber Command. The squadron moved to RAF Tholthorpe in mid-1943 as part of the move to bring all RCAF squadrons into one operational group and converted to Halifax B.V four-engined heavy bombers. In December 1943 the squadron moved to RAF Croft where it was re-equipped with Halifax IIIs and later, Lancaster B.X aircraft. The squadron moved to RCAF Station Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, after the war, disbanding there on 5 September 1945.




431 Squadron was reactivated on the 1st of April 1978, as the 431 Air Demonstration Squadron.

On the 20th of May 1990, the Snowbirds flew their 1000th show over CFB Edmonton.


Unfortunately, 8 People through the snowbirds Career have been killed, After a Pilot was killed in 1988 the RCAF Commented that "...there is risk associated with formation flying. Flying by its very nature has an inherent element of risk. Eight Snowbird pilots have lost their lives in the performance of their duty. We remember them."

Sic Itur ad Astra
(such is the pathway to the stars)

The Canadair CT-114 Tutor (company model CL-41) was the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), and later Canadian Forces, standard jet trainer between the early 1960s and 2000. It was designed and produced by Canadian aircraft manufacturer Canadair.

Development commenced as a private venture by the company. On 13 January 1960, the prototype performed its maiden flight; a year and a half later, the Canadian Government placed a major order for the type. The RCAF would be the dominant user of the type, but a limited number were exported as well. Specifically, the CL-41G model, which was supplied to the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF), served as a ground-attack aircraft up until its withdrawal.

The Tutor served as the Canadian Forces primary jet trainer from the 1960s up until 2000, at which point it was finally retired from this role, having been replaced by a combination of the newer British-built CT-155 Hawk and American-built CT-156 Harvard II. While the majority of Tutors have been retired, a small handful of aircraft are currently still being used by the RCAF’s Snowbirds aerobatics team, as well as by the Aerospace Engineering Test Establishment (AETE) for test purposes.



During 1967, a batch of ten Tutors were modified for use as a formation aerobatic aircraft by the RCAF (and later the unified Canadian Forces) display team, the Golden Centennaires to celebrate Canadas centennial year. At the end of the 1967 season, the display team was disbanded, thus its aircraft returned to routine training duties. In 1971, a new formation team was formed at 2CFFTS (Two Canadian Forces Flying Training School) at CFB Moose Jaw, once again adopted the type. The following year, the name Snowbirds was chosen for the team; during 1978, the team received squadron status as 431 Air Demonstration Squadron.