Parkland Secondary grad Capt. Brendan Pellow will return to the capital region with the Snowbirds team on Monday, signing autographs after a noon flyover.
As a teenager in Sidney, Capt. Brendan Pellow was inspired by his grandfather, a commercial pilot who ended his career as an instructor at Boundary Bay Airport.
“So I got the opportunity to fly with him growing up,” said Pellow, now a member of the Snowbirds aerobatics team. “It was awesome.”
Reached Friday in Grande Prairie, Alta., where the Snowbirds were appearing in an airshow before heading to Victoria on Monday, he said that after graduating from Parkland Secondary in 2008, he attended the University of Victoria, where he studied geography. But he continued to fly, “and eventually saw that as my calling.”
He completed his training for his private pilot’s licence at the Victoria Flying Club, where he also worked for six years. “I was a recreational flyer there through university, and whenever I could I would go flying.”
Pellow went on to join the Canadian Armed Forces and eventually became a member of the Snowbirds in 2024.
Now 36, he’s ready for a homecoming that starts on Monday, when the Snowbirds will be at the B.C. Aviation Museum to sign autographs after a noon flypast. The autograph session will start at 2 p.m. and last up to 90 minutes. Pellow, who still has family on the Peninsula, said he’s hoping to see “some old familiar faces.”
Being a Snowbird pilot is a privilege and an honour, “and there’s obviously a big legacy,” he said, adding the role also allows him to “pass along that passion for aviation and community.” The museum stop will be followed by a full Snowbird show starting at 5 p.m., Tuesday, along the Dallas Road waterfront, and then another flypast on Saturday during the David Foster Foundation gala. Up to 30,000 spectators are expected for the Tuesday show, which will run from 5 p.m. to 5:45 p.m. Planned road closures include Dallas Road from Ogden Point to Clover Point, with Clover Point closed to the public. A bike valet will be available at Cook Street and Dallas Road.
Photo/Patrick Cardinal for Skies Plus
Snowbirds’ public-affairs officer Philip Rochon said the team is looking forward to visiting the capital region again, before the aerobatics program goes on hiatus until the early 2030s. That hiatus is so the team’s aging CT-114 Tutor jets can be retired and replaced by the CT-157 Siskin II model.
“We’re super-excited to come back to Victoria after last year, when we did our non-aerobatic display over the Inner Harbour,” Rochon said. “The outpouring of support from everyone was amazing.”
The stop at the B.C. Aviation Museum will include a dedication ceremony for a former Snowbird aircraft now on display there. Known as Snowbird 1, it dates back to when the team started performing in 1971.
“It was one of the original team-lead aircraft,” Rochon said.
Photo/Heath Moffatt for Skies Plus (Facebook)
Also making an appearance at the museum are former Snowbirds, including Sidney resident Maj. Gen. Glen Younghusband, who served as the Snowbirds’ first team leader in 1971 and 1972. The museum’s hours of operation are from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday and Monday, with admission by donation. On both days, there will be food trucks and a children’s area at the museum at 1910 Norseman Rd.
(Source: Times Colonist, Jeff Bell. Photos (in order)/Government of Canada, Patrick Cardinal, Heath Moffatt)
