The Canadian Forces Snowbirds, officially known as the 431 Air Demonstration Squadron, will perform their final air show season in the iconic Tutor jets this year, Defence Minister David McGuinty announced Tuesday at 15 Wing Moose Jaw.
Following the 2026 season, the Snowbirds will be temporarily stood down, according to RCAF commander Lt-Gen. Jamie Speiser-Blanchet. A replacement aircraft is expected, but the team likely will not return to the skies until the early 2030s.
“This decision was not taken lightly,” Speiser-Blanchet said. “While this marks the end of one chapter, it opens the door to what comes next.”
The Department of National Defence is procuring CT-157 Siskin II planes for the team, which will serve both as training aircraft and for demonstrations. The Snowbirds will remain based at 15 Wing Moose Jaw.
“For 55 years, the Snowbirds have represented Canada and the RCAF with dignity and pride … they are national icons,” McGuinty said. “That’s why today’s announcement is so important.”
During the procurement and onboarding period, the RCAF will continue to participate in airshows and events across the country, the minister added.
Snowbirds pilots have flown Tutor jets since the nine-plane team’s inception in 1971. The CT-114 Tutor was the primary training aircraft for the RCAF from the early 1960s until 2000, when it was replaced by the CT-155 Hawk and CT-156 Harvard II.
According to the Department of National Defence, the Tutor jets were originally slated for retirement in 2010, with a replacement planned by 2035. However, the government extended their lifespan through maintenance investments in 2015 and again in 2020 to keep them flying until at least 2030.
Tuesday’s announcement follows a call from Moose Jaw–Lake Centre–Lanigan MP Fraser Tolmie on May 7 for clarity on whether the aging CT-114 jets would be quietly grounded in 2027.
