Skip to Content Subscribe Our Offers My Account Manage My Subscriptions FAQ Newsletters Canada Canadian True Crime Canadian Politics Health World Israel & Middle East Financial Post NP Comment Longreads Puzzmo Diversions Comics NP News Quiz New York Times Crossword Horoscopes Life Eating & Drinking Style Sponsored Play for Ontario Travel Travel Canada Travel USA Travel International Cruises Travel Essentials Culture Books Celebrity Movies Music Theatre Television Business Essentials Advice Lives Told Tails Told Shopping Buy Canadian Home Living Outdoor Living Tech Style & Beauty Kitchen & Dining Personal Care Entertainment & Hobbies Gift Guide Travel Guide Deals Savings National Post Store More Sports Hockey Baseball Basketball Football Soccer Golf Tennis Driving Vehicle Research Reviews News Gear Guide Obituaries Place an Obituary Place an In Memoriam Classifieds Place an Ad Celebrations Working Business Ads Archives Healthing Epaper Manage Print Subscription Profile Settings My Subscriptions Saved Articles My Offers Newsletters Customer Service FAQ Newsletters Canada World Financial Post NP Comment Longreads Puzzmo Diversions Life Shopping Epaper Manage Print Subscription HomeNP CommentRaymond J. de Souza: Nine reasons the suspension of the Snowbirds is distressingThe daring aerobatic team delighted Canadians, made them proud, augmented their patriotism. They must keep flyingLast updated 18 minutes ago You can save this article by registering for free here. Or sign-in if you have an account.The Royal Canadian Air Force’s Snowbirds, which have been put on "pause" following the end of this year's exhibition season, fly over Kingston while en route to the Gatineau Airshow in Kingston, Ont. on Sept. 11, 2025. If the state apparatus cannot keep an aerobatic team in the air, what can it do, asks Fr. Raymond J. de Souza. Photo by Elliot Ferguson / PostmediaThe Snowbirds will be suspended after this summer’s program of aerobatic exhibitions, not to return until “the 2030s” when new planes are available. The news was distressing on nine levels — one for each Snowbird.Enjoy the latest local, national and international news.Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events.Unlimited online access to National Post.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.Support local journalism.Enjoy the latest local, national and international news.Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events.Unlimited online access to National Post.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.Support local journalism.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorFirst, it highlights Canada’s multi-generational, bipartisan incapacity to handle military procurement. It took nearly 20 years to replace the aging Sea King helicopters. Fighter jets and icebreakers have been fouled up, and this week non-deployed soldiers were asked to return rucksacks and tactical vests as there is a shortage for personnel in the field. Embarrassing.Canada’s procurement problems are not inevitable; the Halifax class frigate modernization program was a success 10 years ago. But how could something as small scale as the Snowbirds (nine planes plus reserves) not have been adequately planned with time to spare?This newsletter from NP Comment tackles the topics you care about. (Subscriber-exclusive edition on Fridays)By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try againSecond, there is the related matter of accountability. The failure is complete if the Snowbirds are entirely shut down for lack of suitable replacement planes. What is the consequence for that? Are those responsible for such a fiasco to be identified and held to account? There was no indication of such at the announcement this week.Third, only last year Canada committed to a massive increase in defence spending, including a pending announcement for new submarines. Does it not erode our projection of new might if we cannot keep a dozen unarmed aerobatic planes aloft?Fourth, does the leadership of our Armed Forces, civilian and military, fully comprehend the importance of the Snowbirds? Prime Minister Mark Carney, when asked about the Snowbirds suspension, acknowledged that they are “part of our heritage, like the (RCMP) Musical Ride.”Yes, they are. That does not inspire confidence, though. Just two years ago, an RCMP audit identified serious troubles in morale and recruitment that pose a potential crisis for the Musical Ride. Now the Snowbirds are in an actual crisis.Fifth, Carney first said that “we inherited” the Snowbirds situation, before correcting himself to say, “I inherited.” He made it clear that he regards himself — on this file as on many others — as not in continuity with Justin Trudeau’s government, but a correction to it.Most welcome, to be sure, but shouldn’t the basic machinery of government — keeping the Snowbirds in the air — be something that doesn’t require the personal attention of the incumbent prime minister? Shouldn’t the default position of the Snowbirds be airborne? And they would only be grounded as the consequence of a specific policy direction of the prime minister or minister of defence, not just as a matter of neglect and indolence?Sixth, and related, this is another manifestation of a crisis of Canadian confidence in state capacity. Can we get emergency rooms to function? Can we get infrastructure projects approved? Can we control disorder in our parks and public spaces? The Snowbirds failure underscores that even a discrete, limited program with foreseeable resource needs is beyond our state capacity. If the state apparatus cannot keep an aerobatic team in the air, what can it do?Seventh, the Snowbirds suspension will be hard on that most Canadian of cities, Moose Jaw, their home base. More than once I have observed that a measure of the exemplary service of Her Late Majesty was that Queen Elizabeth II had been to Moose Jaw more often than Manhattan in her 70 years on the throne. The Snowbirds suspension is not akin to another vacant federal office building in Gatineau. That the Snowbirds flew out of Moose Jaw was exactly right. This is a blow that Moose Jaw does not deserve.Eighth, tyrants — real and aspiring — distract their people with bread and circuses, or just circuses if the bread costs too much dough. The tyrannical abuse of spectacle does not discredit the proper use of spectacle; governments discharge a proper duty of promoting patriotism and pride when they provide for inspiring monuments, grand festivals, national celebrations.Governments are not principally charged with bringing delight to their people, but it is not outside of their remit. There are some delights that are not readily available elsewhere; national aerobatic teams are one of them. The Snowbirds delighted Canadians, made them proud, augmented their patriotism. That is important and not merely incidental.Ninth, the Snowbirds announcement came in the same month that Vladimir Putin’s annual military parade in Moscow was significantly scaled back due to the toll of his unjust and unsuccessful war against Ukraine. There is an important lesson there.Imperial powers display their might to intimidate others, hence the Soviet-era parades of intercontinental ballistic missiles. Why do regimes display weapons of mass destruction to delight their people? They don’t. They do it to terrorize them.Canadian history is different. The RCMP Musical Ride has its roots in the North West Mounted Police, which provided peace, order and good government on the frontier. Might did not make right in the Canadian westward expansion. The Mounties were welcome as they went north and west. The Musical Ride embodies and extends the best of that history.The Snowbirds are analogous. Canadian military history is not one of conquest, but of coming to the aid of allies in need. It is not one of suppressing freedom but defending it. That history has earned a friendly face, an inspiring presence, to be an occasion of delight. The Snowbirds provide that. We need them to fly, to lift our spirits.National Post Get the latest from Father Raymond J. de Souza straight to your inbox Join the Conversation This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Read more about cookies here. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.