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Look up! It's a plane, not a bird: Italian Air Force aerobatic team will fly over Edmonton Thursday

The Italian Air Force aerobatic team, Frecce Tricolori. (Consulate General of Italy) The Italian Air Force aerobatic team, Frecce Tricolori. (Consulate General of Italy)
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Edmontonians will have the chance to look up and see some aerial maneuvers on Thursday as the Italian Air Force aerobatic team performs in the sky.

The flight team, also known as Frecce Tricolori, is touring Canada and the United States for the first time in more than 30 years, according to the Italian Consulate.

In Canada, the tour is celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Royal Canadian Air Force. The tour began in Quebec and will be in Edmonton on Thursday and Cold Lake on Saturday and Sunday.

"It's a huge sign of friendship from Italy to Canada, to the Canadian Armed Forces as well," Col. Stefano Pietropaoli told CTV News Edmonton.

The Frecce Tricolori performed in Ottawa in June with the Canadian Forces Snowbirds ahead of Canada Day celebrations.

Snowbirds and Frecce Tricolori fly over Ottawa leaving a streak of red, white and green, as seen from just west of downtown on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (Jon Bourdeau/CTV Viewer)

The squadron formed in 1961 and is made up of around 100 members of the Italian Air Force. The flying team consists of 10 pilots.

The fly-over will be between 3:15 and 4:15 p.m. and will be visible from city hall, the river valley and other areas downtown.

"It will be like hundreds of metres of smoke with the three different colours of the Italian flag," Pietropaoli said.

The Frecce Tricolori will also be visible in Moose Jaw on July 22 and Toronto on Aug. 1.

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