Did You See This Great Lakes Air Disaster With The Canadian Snowbirds?
Formation flying occasionally has accidents. The danger is part of the draw for the crowd. How can these planes fly so close together without colliding? Performance teams like the Canadian Snowbirds, Blue Angels, and Air Force Thunderbirds do dozens of shows each year without any incidents.
Still, over the years, pilots have died during demonstrations. I didn't realize that one of them died tragically when they crashed into one of the Great Lakes.
The reason I stumbled on this was because the Canadian Snowbirds are doing their 100th-year anniversary show over Lake Superior in Duluth on July 31st. Lots of people are excited about this, and I agree! I love air shows (like the Duluth Air & Aviation Expo).
I started searching for videos of them performing to see what they were about. I remember watching them in 2008 when they flew over Lake Superior and did a show for us. But that was 16 years ago!
Read More: Duluth To Host Free International Airshow On July 31st Over Lake Superior
That's when I stumbled on the video of a tragedy that took place in Toronto over Lake Ontario. While doing a stunt, two of the Snowbird's CT-114 Tutor aircraft touched wingtips, causing the planes to spiral out of control.
Sadly, one of the planes dived directly into the water. Other pilots believe that the 24-year-old pilot who died didn't pull his plane out of the dive because he would have crashed into a fleet of spectators.
The other plane burst into flames and came crashing down.
That pilot was able to eject and parachute to safety, landing in the water not far from spectators.
TV stations across the world broadcast the footage. Viewer Discretion is advised.
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Gallery Credit: KATELYN LEBOFF