A group of B.C. pilots will take to the skies Monday as a tribute to the victim of a deadly Snowbird plane crash in Kamloops.
Dubbed Operation Backup Inspiration as a nod to the Snowbirds event called Operation Inspiration, 35 pilots will depart from Abbotsford Airport shortly before 7 p.m. and fly over several Lower Mainland communities. The flyover has been timed to coincide with the nightly 7 p.m. cheer in support of front-line essential workers in the COVID-19 crisis.
The event lists strict rules, such as no formation flying, to ensure safety during the memorial.
The B.C. General Aviation Association, which is running the event, says the memorial will "pick up where the Snowbirds left off."
The flight plan includes flyovers in Langley, White Rock, Surrey, Maple Ridge, the Tri-cities area and Burnaby before the aircraft cross Burrard Inlet for an east to west pass across the North Shore. The pilots will finish with a west to east pass through Vancouver.
Capt. Jenn Casey, a public affairs officer with the Canadian Forces, died in the incident in Kamloops on Sunday.
Sunday's crash happened the same day the Snowbirds were scheduled to make a trip from Kamloops to Kelowna aimed at boosting the morale of Canadians struggling with the COVID-19 pandemic.
- with files from The Canadian Press
