PREVIOUS PERFORMERS & STATIC DISPLAYS AT THE MANITOBA AIRSHOW

Learn more about performers at static displays that have been at previous shows! Click here to return to the scheduled 2024 lineup.

Canadian Forces CF-18 Hornet Demonstration Team

The CF-18 Demonstration Team personifies the high level of training, excellence, precision and discipline required by the team. From the pilot to the maintenance crews and the coordinators, all reflect the high level of professionalism of all of Canada's airmen and airwomen. For the 2020 season, Captain Dan "Delouse" Deluce will be the demo pilot for the CF-18. Captain Deluce began his current position as an instructor at 419 Tactical Fighter Squadron, training Canada's newest pilots to fly as part of the NATO Flying Training in Canada program. He is currently qualified to fly the CT-155 Hawk and continues to fly the CF-18 in training and operational roles.

Geoff Latter - Nanchang CJ-6A (Nancy)

Geoff thrills audiences with an aerial ballet demonstrating the graceful and elegant flying qualities of Nancy, a fully restored Nanchang CJ-6A. Nancy served in a training squadron where student pilots learned primary flying skills and advanced training such as formation flying, aerobatics and combat tactics. After retirement, Nancy was dismantled and placed in indefinite storage until she was purchased from the Peoples' Liberation Army Air Force. After two years of restoration, Nancy was ready to fly again. Geoff and Nancy take the audience back in time with her classic look, the sound of her radial engine and the graceful lines that are left behind in the sky, created by Nancy's smoke system.

Hot Streak II - Smoke-n-Thunder Jet Shows

Hot Streak II is a twin jet engine 57' Chevy pickup truck that is capable of speeds over 350 miles per hour. Hot Streak II, the world's fastest 57' Chevy and arguably the world's fastest pickup, has been entertaining fans across the country for over 20 years. The truck gets its ground-shaking performance from two Westinghouse J34 engines that were rescued from a US Navy T-2A Buckeye jet aircraft. Get ready for a heart-pounding display on the tarmac when the 25,000 horsepower vehicle hits the gas and lights the afterburners!

Dan Reeves - Yak-55

A second-generation pilot, Dan had his first taste of flight when he was 4 years old and his dad took him for a flight over his home town and wondered, why would you ever want to come down? A native of North Battleford, Saskatchewan, Dan started flying in 1972 after earning a flying scholarship for a Private Pilot licence courtesy of the Royal Canadian Air Cadets. He continued his flying career by working various jobs to support his flying training at the Regina Flying Club where he eventually qualified as a commercial pilot and by 1976, a Flight Instructor at the age of 21. After this, he packed up and moved to Winnipeg where he got his first job as a flight instructor at Point West Aviation (the predecessor of what is now Winnipeg Aviation). In 1978 Dan took a position with the U.S. aircraft manufacturer Cessna Aircraft Company as the national flight training marketing representative. He was responsible for developing and managing Cessna’s Pilot Training Centre programmes across Canada. Dan has passed his love for flying onto his children, spawning an airline captain, a private pilot, and a bunch of happy passengers.

Luke Penner - Extra 300L

Luke Penner is a local pilot from Steinbach, Manitoba. Luke was born into aviation and was practically raised at an airport. He has been a pilot and the Certified Flight Instructor of Harv's Air Flight School since 2003. As a flight instructor, Luke has trained hundreds of commercial pilots who have gone on to work for airlines around the world. Luke will be making his airshow debut at the 2020 Manitoba Airshow! Be sure to give him a wave as he passes over the crowd with the Extra 300L in his first air show performance.

Brent Handy - Pitts Special

Brent Handy is an unrestricted, surface-rated aerobatic pilot. His air show journey began in 2012 when he flew in the opposing solo position for the Canadian Forces Snowbirds. Flying the Pitts Special at air shows across North America, Brent also maintains a full-time career on active duty with the Royal Canadian Air Force as a training and standards pilot, responsible for the Snowbirds. Brent has served as a military flying instructor and also as a CF-18 Hornet fighter pilot. Keep your eyes on the horizon when his distinctive plane loops across the sky.

Jodi Rueger - RV6

Jodi Rueger is making her airshow debut in 2020! Based out of Rocky Mountain House, Alberta, and Redmond, Oregon, Jodi is an airline pilot, a competition pilot, a flight instructor and an aerobatic instructor. She began teaching pilots in niche markets on 82 different types of tailwheel and aerobatic aircraft. As current president of the BC Aerobatic Club of Aerobatics Canada, Jodi hopes to inspire the next generation of pilots to make aviation accessible using one of the most popular kit aviation planes in the world, the RV6, and the most affordable and capable of aerobatic biplanes, the Pitts S-1S. Jodi will be joining the Manitoba Airshow with her RV6.

Team Rocket - Eric Hansen (F1 Rocket) & Ken Fowler (Harmon Rocket II)

Team Rocket is a two-ship formation aerobatic performance featuring Eric Hansen and Ken Fowler, who have been performing together for 6 years. Eric pilots the F1 Rocket, a sleeker, modified version of Ken's Harmon Rocket II. The F1 Rocket is a high-performance, kit-built aircraft, capable of climbing at 3,500 fpm. The Harmon Rocket II is a highly modified RV-4 that gets its power from a Lycoming IO-540 engine, that produces 300 H.P. at 2800 RPM. As Team Rocket, Eric and Ken are dynamic, fast and are the only team of this aircraft type in the air show industry.

Yellow Thunder - David Watson(Harvard Mk4) & Drew Watson (Harvard Mk IIb)

Yellow Thunder is a 2-plane, surface waivered formation aerobatic demonstration team. David Watson pilots the Harvard Mk4. He trained for his pilot's license in 1985 and later that year, acquired a Harvard endorsement, flying his father's Harvard, which he now owns. David is now a commercial pilot with an IFR rating. Drew pilots the Harvard Mk IIb. He acts as a relief pilot for an Alberta based building manufacturer. He purchased his first airplane, a Fleet Canuck, in 2000 and obtained his pilot's license in his airplane in 2020. After purchasing his Harvard in 2006, Drew furthered his career by becoming a commercial pilot in the Harvard in 2008. Drew also has a Multi-IFR Rating which he received in 2013. The yellow Harvards are sure to delight as they dance across the sky in an aerobatic performance.

Canadian Armed Forces SkyHawks Parachute Team

The CAF SkyHawks are Canada's only military parachute demonstration team. Supported by the Canadian Army, the SkyHawks are based out of Trenton, Ontario, at the Canadian Army Advanced Warfare Centre. There, they train alongside soldiers who held defend our country and sovereignty through a wide variety of domestic and overseas missions. For over 40 years, the SkyHawks have represented Canada and the Canadian Armed Forces to over 75 million spectators worldwide under our signature Canadian flag parachutes. Bringing their parachutes in close proximity to build picturesque formations in the sky, the team puts on a spectacular show. Performing these aerobatoic parachute formations requires a high level of skill and courage, known as Canopy Relative Work. It's with great pride that they continue to showcase the professionalism, dedication and team work it takes to be part of the Canadian Armed Forces.

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