The Siskins were a

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environ ...

(RCAF) aerobatic flying team that was established in 1929 at

Camp Borden Canadian Forces Base Borden (also CFB Borden, French: Base des Forces canadiennes Borden or BFC Borden), formerly RCAF Station Borden, is a large Canadian Forces base located in Ontario. The historic birthplace of the Royal Canadian Air Force, ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

. It was the air force's first official aerobatic team. Flying three

Armstrong Whitworth Siskin The Armstrong Whitworth Siskin was a biplane single-seat fighter aircraft developed and produced by the British aircraft manufacturer Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft. It was also the first all-metal fighter to be operated by the Royal Air Force ( ...

biplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...

s, the Siskins quickly built a reputation for performing daring maneuvers. The Siskins flew more than 100

air show An air show (or airshow, air fair, air tattoo) is a public event where aircraft are exhibited. They often include aerobatics demonstrations, without they are called "static air shows" with aircraft parked on the ground. The largest air show ...

s over three years before being disbanded in 1932 when the Great Depression forced the RCAF to reduce operations. Siskins' Squadron Leader E.A. McNab would later earn recognition as the first RCAF pilot to win the Distinguished Flying Cross during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

.Milberry, p. 51.

References

* Dempsey, Daniel V. ''A Tradition of Excellence: Canada's Airshow Team Heritage''. Victoria, BC: High Flight Enterprises, 2002. . * Milberry, Larry, ed. ''Sixty Years—The RCAF and CF Air Command 1924–1984''. Toronto: Canav Books, 1984. . Royal Canadian Air Force {{Canada-mil-stub