If you live in the Norland area in Kawartha Lakes and see an Canadian Armed Forces helicopter flying overhead on Saturday morning (November 5), don’t be alarmed.
It’s part of a Remembrance Day service and cenotaph re-dedication event being held in Norland, according to a public service announcement from the Department of National Defence.
A Bell CH-146 Griffon helicopter from 427 Special Operations Aviation Squadron (427 SOAS) in Petawawa will conduct a flypast at around 10:45 a.m. The helicopter will fly over the area at an altitude no lower than 500 feet above the highest obstacle on their route.
“Flypasts by the Canadian Armed Forces aircraft are conducted in support of special events, and are carefully planned and closely controlled to ensure public safety,” reads the announcement. The flypast is dependent upon weather and flying conditions.
The Norland Remembrance Day service begins with a parade departing the Norland School Hall Community Centre at 3448 Monck Road at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday.
The cenotaph, which was is located on the east side of Highway 35, just north of Monck Road, was erected by the Norland Horticultural Society in 1984. The cairn was built by local stonemason John Beachli.
Based at CFB Petawawa, 427 Special Operations Aviation Squadron is a tactical helicopter unit providing aviation support to the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command, with secondary domestic operations including search and rescue support.
The squadron was originally founded during the Second World War as No. 427 “Lion” Squadron RCAF, a bomber squadron. Disbanded after the war ended, it was called back into action in 1962 as a fighter squadron before being disbanded again eight years later. The squadron went back into operation again in 1971 as a tactical helicopter unit.
In 1992, the unit was deployed to Somalia in support of Operation Deliverance, where it distinguished itself during daytime and nighttime operations. The squadron has also taken an active role in humanitarian efforts, including missions in Haiti in 1995, the January 1998 ice storm in eastern Canada, and the November 1998 mission to help the victims of Hurricane Mitch in Honduras. In 2006, the unit joined the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command and was given its current name.
