Transport Canada has granted a rare regulatory exemption that will allow continuation of celebratory and memorial flybys for special events. In 2023, the regulator changed its interpretation of rules governing aviation displays and decided that locally organized flyovers of private aircraft for Remembrance Day and private events like funerals, holiday ceremonies, celebrations, weddings, and sporting events were, in fact, airshows and needed the same level of oversight. That meant anyone planning a flyover had to go through the complexity of getting a Special Flight Operations Certificate, which can take months. Warbirds Canada, whose members frequently operate flyovers, applied for and received an exemption to the new interpretation, much to their own surprise.
The exemption comes with some strings. For instance, formation flights are restricted to five aircraft flying straight and level above 1,000 feet AGL, although there’s and exemption within the exemption allowing a “missing man” maneuver where one of the aircraft ascends out of the formation. It also bans carrying passengers and dropping anything out of the aircraft. The full exemption is below.
Was there a string of incidents that prompted the restriction, or did some young bureaucrat just get a visit from the Good Idea Fairy?
By all means TC bureaucrats, young or old should definitely have waited for a string of incidents with a fatal accident or two thrown in for good measure before establishing restrictions of this nature. For sure you’d never want government regulators consulting the Good Idea Fairy until after someone gets killed.
But if it’s been going on for decades without a problem, what’s the reason to believe its suddenly going to be one? It’s up there with medical certification for flying light airplanes, or the sudden intense scrutiny over Phase I test areas. Some desk jockey or braindead elected official decides they don’t like something, cites some imaginary “but it could maybe theoretically potentially happen” so-called resoning, and bam–another unnecessary and all too often overly restrictive knee jerk “solution” in search of an actual problem.
And once you go down that route, what other restrictions could you implement while screaming “think of the children!”? Better not let those little airplanes operate over populated areas, because those pilots aren’t trained to professional standards and they might crash into a school. For that matter, nobody but the airlines should be flying, and that under strict government supervision. Get rid of VFR and GA entirely! It’s just not safe. Look at all the accidents!
Don’t jerk the chain too hard folks. Most of us are singing from the same songbook. We are living in the age of “Entitlement” as most of the public will tell you whilst taking your picture with their smartphone. Below the radar has it’s benefits and if some permissions are publicly granted by T.C. let’s just nod appreciatively and not upset the applecart.