Golden Centennaires Tutor Jet Display

1967 marked the 100^th anniversary of the creation of Canada as a nation. To celebrate this momentous occasion, the Canadian Air Force set up an aerobatic team, which was to perform at 100 air demonstrations across the country. The team was known as the “Golden Centennaires” and primarily flew a formation of eight gold and blue CT-114 Tutor jets. Although the Golden Centennaires were disbanded after doing 121 shows in North America (including the Bahamas for two shows), they are regarded as being the precursor of today’s Canadian Forces Snowbirds display team, who have now been captivating North American audiences for almost 50 years!

Did you know that the Creston Valley has a local connection to the Golden Centennaires? Clarence “CB” Lang was the Squadron Leader of the Golden Centennaires Canadair CL-41 Tutor jet performance team. CB Lang was raised in Lister, and he and the Golden Centennaires did an aerial demonstration performance over the Creston Valley on July 14, 1967. Can you imagine the excitement he must have felt being able to lead such a demonstration in front of a hometown audience? Mayor Ron Toyota was one such lucky individual to have seen that Golden Centennaires show in the Creston Valley, and as a former pilot himself, it is an incredible memory that he won’t ever forget.

As a tribute to CB Lang, John Huscroft of Creston organized and acquired a Tutor jet (serial number 114187) in 2010. He arranged to have this Tutor jet re-painted in the original 1967 Golden Centennaires livery. It has been a personal goal and dream of John’s to have this Tutor Jet displayed in the Town of Creston. In the fall of 2021, he made a formal request to the Town of Creston to accommodate this memorial display in a suitable location within the Town. The display is quite large - it is approximately 32 ft. in height, 36 ft. in width, with a 60 ft.² base. Based on the size of the display, there was only a couple of suitable locations within the Town. After careful consideration, it was determined that the best location (for now) for this Tutor Jet display is in the north parking lot of our Millennium Park, adjacent to the trail that runs along the west side, next to the College of the Rockies. It will be an amazing visual addition to our downtown core, and will most definitely be another point of interest, showcasing Creston’s connection to the Golden Centennaires. There is only one other Golden Centennaire Tutor jet on display, and that is at the Southport airport in Manitoba where they trained for the 1967 programs.

Those of you who knew John Huscroft know that he worked tirelessly with quiet determination, driven to succeed in whatever he chose to do. Unfortunately, John passed away on February 20, 2022 before he could see the result of his incredible efforts to establish this memorial to CB Lang and the Golden Centennaires. Mayor Ron Toyota has taken this project on as a personal tribute to his friend “Johnny” who has always been so devoted in service to the Creston Valley and its citizens.

John’s Tutor jet is currently being stored in Campbellford, Ontario. It is estimated that it will cost approximately $48,000 to complete the installation. The Town of Creston has committed to facilitating the donation process to this legacy project of John Huscroft for the Huscroft family.

On behalf of Mayor Toyota and the Huscroft family, thank you for any donation to make this dream of John Huscroft’s a reality by the summer of 2022. Your support is so appreciated!  

Clarence “CB” Lang is pictured on the far left with his team.

Creston's jet is now displayed in the North parking lot of Millennium Park