Canadian Forces Snowbirds set to return to Kelowna for 2 performances

The Canadian Forces Snowbirds are set to swoop into Kelowna later this week and dazzle crowds with their aeronautic acrobatics for two days straight.

They’ll take off over Okanagan Lake Saturday, July 9 and Sunday, July 10 at 1 p.m. as part of Kelowna International Airport’s 75th anniversary celebration.

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“We have not seen Canada’s elite Canadian Forces pilots here for years, but they will be here to help us mark Kelowna International Airport’s 75th Anniversary,” Kelowna Mayor Colin Basran said in a statement.

“This commitment to our city reflects YLW’s status as one of the top airports in Canada and our city’s history as an aviation pioneer and aerospace leader.”

Basran said the effects of the pandemic restrictions in 2020 and 2021 hit Kelowna’s airport hard, but it is already “bouncing back better and faster than most airports in Canada.”

READ MORE: CF Snowbirds team member killed in crash in Kamloops, B.C.

“So I think we have our own elite performers in the aviation industry right here in Kelowna,” he said.

The CF Snowbirds Air Demonstration will take place over Okanagan Lake, north of the William R. Bennett Bridge. The best place to watch  will be along the waterfront, from City Park to Waterfront Park.

Following the CF Snowbirds Demonstration on Saturday, there will be a Wings n’ Wheels event at the new KF Centre for Excellence located at YLW along Airport Way, 5800 Lapointe Drive, from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.

READ MORE: ‘They want to lock us into a hotel’: Snowbirds criticize new travel measures

Attendees will have the opportunity to meet the CF Snowbirds and see the CT-114 Canadian Tutor up close. The Wings n’ Wheels event will also have food trucks, face painting, music and a car show presented by August Motors and the Vintage Car Club of Canada – Okanagan Chapter.

For more information, visit ylw.kelowna.ca/75