Tutors Grounded Indefinitely

The RCAF has grounded the Snowbirds, more precisely the flying fleet of about 20 CT-114 Tutor aircraft, pending the results of an investigation into the takeoff accident of one of the airplanes in Fort St. John, B.C. earlier this month. The aircraft ended up in a farmer’s field after the pilot apparently took off and then immediately landed the aircraft. He was not hurt. The Air Force has been tight-lipped about the circumstances of the accident but it clearly believes there’s potential for the same thing to happen to the rest of the fleet.
The grounding has resulted in the cancellation of at least four appearances and there’s no timeline on a return to the airshow circuit. The RCAF brass issued a statement earlier this week saying it will “conduct a deliberate, detailed and broad risk analysis, with the aim of enabling the safe resumption of CT-114 flying operations.”