A Great Day at 14 Wing Greenwood, Nova Scotia!

Story and photos by John Chalmers,
posted October 2024
In late August, I spent a few days enjoying travel in Nova Scotia with a few family members. Part of the purpose of the trip was to visit my grandson, Ben Nixon from Fernie BC, posted as a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) firefighter at 14 Wing Greenwood. With me were Ben’s parents, Tara and Troy, and their son Harrison, all from Fernie, and another grandson, Gianluca, from Edmonton, like me. Tied in with that on the same day was attendance to see Air Show Atlantic at the base. It featured paratroopers, helicopters, static display of many RCAF, RAF and USAF aircraft ranging from jet interceptors to huge transport aircraft and privately owned aircraft. The air show included aerial participation by propeller and jet aircraft and an aerobatic glider. Opening the show was the Canadian Armed Forces Skyhawks parachute team falling from the sky with the flags of Canada.
Above, grandson Ben speaks to family members prior to starting a tour in the impressive fire hall at the Greenwood base. Ben is now in his second year with the air force, shown while outfitting his brother, Harrison, in firefighter’s gear to give him a feel of what firefighters need to wear.

While watching the show, at one point when I turned around upon hearing a voice behind me, I was pleasantly surprised to see Bruce Lockhart of the CAHS Turnbull chapter of New Brunswick! Chapter members were at the air show with a fine display in a tent shared with the Royal Canadian Air Cadets.
Kudos to the New Brunswick CAHS chapter for their attendance and participation in displays at the air show, attended by some 15,000 spectators per day, in showing and speaking about the Canadian Aviation Historical Society and the great projects carried out by the NB Turnbull chapter.
The New Brunswick team at the Air Atlantic Show, August 24-25, left to right are Greg Boudreau, Harold Wright, Bruce Lockhart, Peter Hanlon and Marc Horncastle.
A unique project by the NB chapter is the creation of three special teddy bears on display in the army, navy and air force uniforms. As Harold Wright explained, “The uniforms of these bears are made from buttons, badges and fabric of real Second World War uniforms.” You’ll be hearing more about the purpose of these three little “veterans” in the future!
No great Canadian air show would be complete without the Tutor jets of our beloved Snowbirds Air Demonstration Team! All nine aircraft were present for the snow, but only eight performed. Nevertheless, the Snowbirds enthralled spectators with a spectacular performance as the opening act.
The famed Red Arrows of the Royal Air Force, flying Hawk T1A jet aircraft, were a welcome inclusion of Air Show Atlantic. It was the first time the aerobatic team had performed in Canada in 5 years since their display at the 70th Anniversary of the Canadian International Air Show. A very popular display at the show was the tent of the Red Arrows where folks lined up – including me! – to receive a free team photo signed by one of the pilots.
Their wonderful display was the concluding act of the show, ending with a final pass of smoke trails in the colours of Canada’s flag, accompanied by the RCAF’s CF-18 painted in special livery to celebrate the 100th year of the RCAF.
At left, the Canso from the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum, a CAHS museum member, was a popular aircraft with the visitors. At right, a Canadian air force helicopter hovers while performing its demonstration.
At left, the CF-18 of the RCAF in its 100th anniversary livery and the USAF F-16 Viper at right both impressed the large crowd in their aerial demonstrations of power and manoeuvrability, as well as their noise!
These two aircraft demonstrate the range in size of aircraft on static display. At left is an Atlas A-400M transport aircraft of the Royal Air Force, having a 139-foot wingspan. At right is a single-seater First World War fighter aircraft, a 7/8 scale Nieuport 11 with a 21.5-foot wingspan. In order to operate the Lewis machine gun mounted above the upper wing, a pilot had to stand up while flying the aircraft! Owned by Larry Ricker of New Brunswick, a former RCAF pilot, the biplane has been donated to the New Brunswick Aviation Museum in Miramichi, NB, where it is kept in flying condition. This aircraft was one of the five such replica aircraft of the Vimy Flight Team taken to France by the RCAF in 2017. They did a flypast over the Vimy Ridge monument on April 9, 2017, during the 100th anniversary ceremonies of the Battle of Vimy Ridge.
Visiting 14 Wing Greenwood for Air Show Atlantic provided opportunity to see not only the aircraft on static display, but a chance to visit the nearby Greenwood Aviation Museum and the outdoor display of aircraft. At left above is an RCAF Argus at the outdoor display, and at the end of a wonderful day I had to have a selfie taken of me with the museum’s Avro Lancaster! Of over 7300 Lancs built for war service, only about two dozen remain, of which fortunately a few are to be found at Canadian aviation museums.
 
Again, congratulations to the Turnbull NB Chapter for putting their work and the CAHS in front of a large crowd at one of Canada’s biggest air shows of 2024 celebrating the centennial of the RCAF this year.
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