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The Snowbirds are coming home.
The Royal Canadian Air Force said in a statement Wednesday that the Tutor jets flown by the aerobatic team had been cleared to “resume wings-level flight” in order to travel from the Atlanta area to their home base at 15 Wing Moose Jaw.
The 10 jets were to start the trip Wednesday.
The Snowbirds had been on what the RCAF called “an operational pause” since one of their pilots had to eject before a show in Atlanta on Oct. 13. His jet crashed into a farmer’s field.
Capt. Kevin Domon-Grenier was taken to hospital with minor injuries after his ejection. There weren’t any injuries on the ground after the jet crashed.
The Snowbirds’ planes were parked at an airfield in Peachtree City, Ga., in the wake of the incident. They remained there while an investigation was conducted.
After a thorough examination of the team’s aircraft, the RCAF determined they could be flown safely to Canada.
“When flying air demonstrations, the Canadian Forces Snowbirds operate in tight formation, conducting loops and rolls in our signature formations,” Lt.-Col. Mike French, the Snowbirds’ commanding officer, said in the statement.
“At this point we have received enough information from investigators to resume wings-level flight in order to return our jets to our home base. However we need to let the investigators continue to work before we resume full operations.”
The RCAF said that investigation will push back the Snowbirds’ schedule. The team normally flies 80 training missions before going to spring training in Comox, B.C., but the RCAF noted the team’s 2020 spring training will be delayed at least one month.
It’s unclear what impact the delay will have on the Snowbirds’ schedule for 2020.