Flying home: Local pilot living his dream
Windsor is home base for the Canadian Forces Snowbirds this weekend, and it’s a special landing spot for one of its pilots.
Since a young age, Bassam Mnaymneh has always wanted to be a pilot.
“As a child, going to airshows in Windsor, I’d see Snowbirds and fighter jets and airplanes fly over I always wanted to be a military pilot,” he says.
After graduating from Vincent Massey Secondary, he attended The Royal Military College in Kingston, Ont.
“I ended up flying helicopters in Victoria British Columbia and then moved to Moose Jaw,” Mnaymneh says.
The 43-year-old is now a pilot for Snowbird 5, which flies in the back of the formation.
“So I was able to focus my attention on being a military pilot. The snowbirds is the cherry on top,” he says.
The Snowbirds signature nine-jet precision formation will be featured at an air show in Ypsilanti, Michigan this weekend.
They’re using Windsor as a platform for take-off and landing.
“It’s just great to come home and see my family from a distance and just to say hello,” says Mnaymneh.
The show is divided into three parts.
First an opener with nine planes flying in formation together doing loops and roles.
“Then we split and do integrated so it’s a series of passes. We have our solo pilots who do crosses,” Mnaymneh says.
And then a finale.
“Sit in your backyard or front yard have a look up and say hello from there and that would be awesome,” he says.
Mnaymneh says residents will be able to see the Snowbirds in the air around 5:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Spectacular aurora light show to be seen across Canada Friday night
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
BREAKING McGill University seeks emergency injunction to remove pro-Palestinian encampment from campus
McGill University has filed a request for an injunction to have the pro-Palestinian encampment removed from its campus.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
U.S. says Israel's use of U.S. arms likely violated international law, but evidence is incomplete
The Biden administration said Friday that Israel's use of U.S.-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law but wartime conditions prevented U.S. officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A person was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
More than half the Canadians once detained in Syrian camps for suspected ISIS family members have returned home
A total of 29 Canadians have been freed from detention camps in northeast Syria and brought back to Canada since human rights advocates began lobbying for their release years ago.
Canada abstains from Palestinian UN membership vote but supports two-state solution
Canada was one of 25 countries that abstained from a United Nations vote on Palestinian membership that passed with overwhelming support on Friday.