The Golden Hawks were a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 military aerobatic flying team established in 1959 to celebrate the 35th anniversary or the Royal Canadian Air Force

Royal Canadian Air Force

The history of the Royal Canadian Air Force begins in 1920, when the air force was created as the Canadian Air Force . In 1924 the CAF was renamed the Royal Canadian Air Force and granted royal sanction by King George V. The RCAF existed as an independent service until 1968...

 (RCAF) and the "Golden" 50th anniversary of Canadian flight, which began with the AEA Silver Dart

AEA Silver Dart

-References:NotesBibliography* Aerial Experimental Association . Aerofiles. . Retrieved: 19 May 2005.* Green, H. Gordon. The Silver Dart: The Authentic Story of the Hon. J.A.D. McCurdy, Canada's First Pilot. Fredericton, New Brunswick: Atlantic Advocate Book, 1959.* Milberry, Larry. Aviation in...

 in 1909.

Background

Initially a six-plane team was envisioned as performing for only one year with the Canadair Sabre, but the Golden Hawks were so popular after their single 63-show season that the team was expanded. Another Sabre was added to the team, allowing for a five-aircraft main formation with two solo jets. They continued performing for three more seasons until they were disbanded for financial reasons, on February 7, 1964, having flown a total of 317 shows across North America

North America

North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

.

Not only did the team perform the loops, rolls and other maneuvers standard to military formation flying, they had their own trademark maneuvers. One of the Golden Hawks' signature stunts was a low-level flyby of the crowd with their canopies open, waving at the spectators. The Golden Hawks pioneered the bomb burst maneuver and a two-aircraft coordinated solo program which virtually every military team since has adopted in various ways.

Tributes and survivors

In Oakville, Ontario

Oakville, Ontario

Oakville is a town in Halton Region, on Lake Ontario in Southern Ontario, Canada, and is part of the Greater Toronto Area. As of the 2006 census the population was 165,613.-History:In 1793, Dundas Street was surveyed for a military road...

, 540 Golden Hawks Royal Canadian Air Cadet

Royal Canadian Air Cadets

Royal Canadian Air Cadets is a Canadian national youth program for persons aged 12 to 18. It is administered by the Canadian Forces and funded through the Department of National Defence with additional support from the civilian Air Cadet League of Canada...

 Squadron is named for the air demonstration team.

During the 1980s, 851 Royal Canadian Air Cadet

Royal Canadian Air Cadets

Royal Canadian Air Cadets is a Canadian national youth program for persons aged 12 to 18. It is administered by the Canadian Forces and funded through the Department of National Defence with additional support from the civilian Air Cadet League of Canada...

 Squadron based in Prince Edward County, Ontario

Prince Edward County, Ontario

Prince Edward County is a single-tier municipality and a census division of the Canadian province of Ontario.-Geography:Prince Edward County is located in Southern Ontario on a large irregular headland or littoral at the eastern end of Lake Ontario, just west of the head of the St. Lawrence River...

 owned a Sabre that at one time was used by the Golden Hawks. From 1961 to 1977 the same Sabre was on display at Pinecrest school in Bloomfield, Ontario. The Sabre currently resides in Barrie, Ontario

Barrie, Ontario

Barrie is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada, located on the western shore of Lake Simcoe, approximately 90 km north of Toronto. Although located in Simcoe County, the city is politically independent...

.

In 2009, Hawk One, a fully refurbished Canadair Sabre in Golden Hawk colours, owned by Vintage Wings of Canada

Vintage Wings of Canada

Vintage Wings of Canada is an aviation museum of historically significant aircraft, organized as a charitable foundation. The facility is located at the Gatineau-Ottawa Executive Airport, Quebec, Canada. It was founded by former Cognos CEO and philanthropist Michael Potter...

 helped to celebrate the Centennial of Flight in Canada. Hawk One performed in air shows and flypasts across Canada.

In 2009, T-33 "133#500" Golden Hawk Support Aircraft has been transferred to London International Airport and is now with the Jet Aircraft Museum

Jet Aircraft Museum

The Jet Aircraft Museum is a charitable foundation aviation museum specializing in Canadian Forces jet aircraft. The museum is located at the London International Airport, Ontario, Canada.The museum officially opened on 12 September 2009.-Mission:...

 -The T-33 Foundation of Canada.

Accidents and incidents

• March 12, 1959 - A Golden Hawks Sabre crashed into a wooded area near RCAF Station Chatham
  CFB Chatham
  Canadian Forces Base Chatham or CFB Chatham was a Canadian Forces Base located immediately south of the town of Chatham, New Brunswick, Canada. Parts are now operating as Miramichi Municipal Airport since 1974 with a partial runway available .From 1970 until 1985 Chatham had a Base Rescue Flight...
  
   while practising a solo routine, killing F/L Sam Eisler.

• August 10, 1959 - A Golden Hawks Sabre overshot when landing at McCall Airfield
  Calgary International Airport
  Calgary International Airport, , is the international airport that serves Calgary, Alberta, Canada and the surrounding region; it is situated approximately northeast of downtown Calgary...
  
  , Calgary
  Calgary
  Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
  
  , Alberta, with the rest of the team and collided with a Piper Pacer about two miles west of the field. The Sabre pilot, F/L Jeb Kerr, and two occupants of the Pacer were killed.

• 1959 - A solo Golden Hawk Sabre piloted by F/L G.T. Price was struck by a bird over Bedford Basin
  Bedford Basin
  Bedford Basin is a large enclosed bay, forming the northwestern end of Halifax Harbour on Canada's Atlantic coast.-Geography:Geographically, the basin is situated entirely within the Halifax Regional Municipality and is oriented northwest-southeast, measuring approximately 8 kilometres long and 5...
  
  , Halifax
  City of Halifax
  Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...
  
  , Nova Scotia
  Nova Scotia
  Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
  
  shattering the windscreen and canopy. Although the pilot's helmet visor was torn away and his vision was temporarily impaired, F/L Price was able to land safely with the assistance of F/L R.E. Annis, the other solo pilot.

• February 22, 1961 - Golden Hawks Sabre pilot F/O Jim McCann was killed during formation practice after the right wing of his aircraft was severely damaged during a collision with another Sabre.

• April 1961 - Golden Hawks pilot F/O Bill Stewart ejected at low altitude during a practice routine near Chatham because of an engine malfunction.