Siskins

Siskins
Country:	Canada
Currently used aircraft type:	Armstrong Whitworth Siskin
Sponsor:	Royal Canadian Air Force
Base airfield:	Canadian Forces Base Borden
Founding:	1929

The Siskins ( Siskins ) were a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) aerobatic team that was formed in 1929 at Camp Canadian Forces Base Borden , Ontario . It was the Air Force's first official aerobatic team. They flew three Armstrong Whitworth Siskin biplanes. The Siskins quickly gained a reputation for performing dangerous stunts. The Siskins flew more than 100 air shows over three years before disbanding in 1932. The global economic crisis forced the RCAF to reduce its activities to purely military operations. The Siskins were also stationed in St Hubert and on Canadian Forces Base Trenton .

Siskin 'Squadron Leader IAN McNabb later became the first RCAF pilot to be awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross during World War II .

literature

• Dempsey, Daniel V. A Tradition of Excellence: Canada's Airshow Team Heritage . Victoria, BC: High Flight Enterprises, 2002. ISBN 0-9687817-0-5 .
• Milberry, Larry, ed. Sixty Years — The RCAF and CF Air Command 1924-1984 . Toronto: Canav Books, 1984. ISBN 0-9690703-4-9 .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Milberry, p. 45.
2. ↑ Milberry, p. 51.