Snowbirds

Without a doubt Teen...the government needs to prioritize its spending/budget and ya.......spending on the Snowbirds now.....would not be on the top of my list.

One of my points was.......if they knew the equipment was faulty....beit on the Snowbirds or something else.....either ground it/fix it, but don't ignore it. Safety should be paramount!

Riddick

Riddick wrote:I liked how the CAF would show and entertain the public with the Snowbirds...but ya...they are old.  It would be nice to see them replaced instead of disbanded.  If the government would put in money/resources in Canada/military it would be awesome.

To disband the Airborne was wrong for the wrong reason(s).  If they were to examine the cause instead of the symptoms, we would still have a force to be reckoned with.  The same with the Snowbirds....fix the problem and you fix the symptoms....you don't kill the patient to kill the disease! IMO

Riddick

With the limited budget CAF gets I see it as a waste of money that could be better utilized on other equipment CAF needs, like the existing jets that need to be replaced

I liked how the CAF would show and entertain the public with the Snowbirds...but ya...they are old. It would be nice to see them replaced instead of disbanded. If the government would put in money/resources in Canada/military it would be awesome.

To disband the Airborne was wrong for the wrong reason(s). If they were to examine the cause instead of the symptoms, we would still have a force to be reckoned with. The same with the Snowbirds....fix the problem and you fix the symptoms....you don't kill the patient to kill the disease! IMO

Riddick

Snowbirds / air shows are almost like circus’....do we really need them anymore.?

Actually the first tudor was acquired by CAF in 1963. Last tudor delivered was 1967. So yeah typical Canadian Forces equipment....outdated and way beyond their shelf life.

It's time to disband the Snowbirds IMO. Cost to maintain these aircraft is too much for a underfunded CAF and the money can be spent in better places within CAF.

They are all at least 54 years old, so I would say that it's time to retire them. Otherwise, they will keep costing Canadians their lives.

https://canadianaviationnews.wordpress.com/2020/06/15/canadian-military-knew-in-2016-snowbirds-ejection-seats-needed-upgrading-but-project-still-only-in-early-stages/

"No explanation was provided about why action on the parachute upgrade was not started when the problem was identified four years ago".

I heard the military was aware of the need to upgrade/fix the ejection seat issue some 15 years ago....but I haven't been able to find the article yet.  I am not surprised.....all 3 elements have old crap the soldiers have to use....how many more people must die before our government will change its lackadaisical attitude regarding military spending (or looking after its soldiers/veterans in general).....They (the GoC) should know and understand why recruitment is so low!  SHAME!

Riddick


Canadian military knew in 2016 Snowbirds ejection seats needed upgrading but project still only in early stages
15 June 2020Canadian Aviation News

News from The Chronicle Herald – link to story and update

David Pugliese, Ottawa Citizen, Postmedia News | Published: 15 June 2020


Captain Jenn Casey, the public affairs officer with the Canadian Forces Snowbirds aerobatic team, died on May 17 after the Snowbirds aircraft she was a passenger in crashed in Kamloops, B.C.

The Canadian military knew in 2016 the ejection seat on Snowbirds aircraft needed to be upgraded but it is still only in the early stages of modernizing that system.

The Royal Canadian Air Force has now started a project to upgrade the parachutes on the ejection seats, the Canadian military confirmed to this newspaper.

Capt. Jennifer Casey, the public affairs officer with the Canadian Forces Snowbirds aerobatic team, died on May 17 after the Snowbirds aircraft she was a passenger in crashed in Kamloops, B.C. Video of the incident appears to show Casey and Capt. Richard MacDougall, the pilot of the CT-114 Tutor aircraft, eject from the plane shortly before it slammed into the ground. MacDougall survived with serious injuries.

A Canadian Forces flight safety team has focused its investigation into the crash on a possible bird strike as well as on the performance of the aircraft’s escape system, the team noted in a statement.

Issues with the ejection seat system on board the CT-114 aircraft were identified in 2015. Canadian Forces tests evaluating the performance of the system were finished in 2016, the military confirmed.

“Based on those results, it was determined that the most effective way to improve the system would be through a parachute upgrade program, which will identify and assess candidate canopy designs, perform testing for airworthiness clearance, and eventually implement a new parachute system in the CT114,” the Canadian Forces noted in an email. “We are still very early in the project.”

No information was provided on when the upgrade would be completed or how much it would cost. Military sources say the cost is relatively minor.

No explanation was provided about why action on the parachute upgrade was not started when the problem was identified four years ago.

A witness at the crash scene claimed that Casey’s parachute did not open.

The Canadian Forces noted in its email to this newspaper that since the flight safety investigation was underway it would not be appropriate to comment any further.

Currently, the CT-114 Tutors use a Weber CL-41 ejection seat.  The Tutor has two ejection seats that are “individually activated”, which means that each seat is ejected when its handgrip is pulled, the Canadian Forces noted. The seats were upgraded in 2003 in order to improve the seat and occupant separation during ejection, the military added.

Casey was with the Snowbirds since 2018. She joined the Canadian Armed Forces in August 2014 as a direct entry officer. Prior to joining she spent several years working in broadcast radio as a reporter, anchor, and producer in both Halifax and Belleville, Ont.

MacDougall landed on a roof after ejecting from the aircraft. Images on social media show two men helping the pilot laying on a roof. There is a parachute visible. Kamloops firefighters used a ladder truck to get the pilot down and he was taken to hospital.

The Snowbirds flew over Kamloops the day before the crash as part of Operation Inspiration which had the Canadian Forces team doing flyovers over communities to boost morale during the new coronavirus pandemic.

MacDougall and Casey took off from Kamloops on May 17 and had planned to fly to Comox, B.C. Two Snowbirds aircraft took off from Kamloops Airport at the same time that day and the plane being flown by MacDougall climbed steeply and then went into a dive, video of the incident shows.

The CT-114 Tutor fleet has been placed on an operational pause and Operation Inspiration has been delayed indefinitely, according to the military.

Last year the aerobatic team was temporarily grounded by the Royal Canadian Air Force after a crash of one of its aircraft near Atlanta, Georgia. The crash happened on Oct. 13. Snowbird pilot Capt. Kevin Domon-Grenier was forced to eject from his Tutor aircraft shortly before the team’s performance in Atlanta, the team stated at the time. Domon-Grenier suffered minor injuries and was taken to hospital as a precaution following the ejection.  The Tutor jet crashed into a farmer’s field and there were no injuries on the ground.

Copyright Postmedia Network Inc., 2020