Updated May 19, 2026 @ 1:18pm
Canada’s famous military aerial ambassadors – the Snowbirds -- are being grounded well into the next decade.
Defence Minister David McGuinty says the nine-jet aerobatic team will be mothballed until the early 2030s as the team’s signature, but aging, CT-114 Tutor jets are replaced by the CT-157-Siskin II.
“The sound of (the Tutor) engines and the trails of the white plumes of smoke behind them have become part of our national story," McGuinty told a news conference Tuesday in Saskatchewan at the team's home base, 15 Wing Moose Jaw.
"For millions of Canadians, they represent cherished memories.
"Canadians remember watching the snowbirds as children. They remember looking up at the sky with awe. They remember seeing them and seeing something that made them proud of this country."
The Snowbirds will perform at the Barrie Air Show on Saturday, June 13, and Sunday, June 14.
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This year will be the final one for Snowbird air shows in the Tutor and the team will remain based in Moose Jaw.
It's the end of an era. The Snowbirds have never flown anything but the Tutors. There were 190 of them built in the mid 1960s. They were modified for the Snowbirds to enhance performance for low-level acrobatic flying.
The term Snowbirds was the successful entry after a local school held a name-the-team contest, and the first show was in Moose Jaw on July 11, 1971.
Later that year, the team went international for the first time, appearing at Williams Air Force Base in Arizona.
Since then, they have become staples of national events and celebrations, buzzing Parliament Hill on Canada Day and overflying the CFL championship game, the Grey Cup.
They have performed as far south as Mexico. In 1974, they became the first aerobatic team to perform north of the Arctic Circle. In 1988, they used coloured smoke for the first time during the opening ceremonies of the Winter Olympics in Calgary.
They have performed 2,700 times for more than 140 million people.
There has also been tragedy. Ten air force members have died in service of the Snowbirds and each show is dedicated to their memory.
Tuesday's announcement followed weeks of speculation about the squadron's future.
Federal Opposition Conservative Fraser Tolmie raised the issue earlier this month. He told question period that air shows across North America are "quietly being told" they can't book the Snowbirds for events in 2027, and that this summer will be their final season.
Tolmie, who represents Moose Jaw and is a former mayor of the city, has said it's time to get the ball rolling on a replacement fleet contract and "save our Snowbirds."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 19, 2026.
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