CF-18 Hornet fly-by over TD Place freaks out Ottawa residents
'Folks, we regret that anyone was unaware of this fly-by in advance,' Royal Canadian Air Force says
The Royal Canadian Air Force and the Ottawa Redblacks' ownership group have both apologized after a CF-18 Hornet fly-by during Thursday night's CFL game — in honour of Canadian Armed Forces appreciation night — scared residents.
The fighter jet flew over TD Place Stadium in the Glebe and Old Ottawa South neighbourhoods as the CFL game was getting underway.
<a href="https://twitter.com/CBCOttawa">@CBCOttawa</a> we managed to get some video of the awesome CF18 flyby from last night! <a href="http://t.co/knFs9jELk5">pic.twitter.com/knFs9jELk5</a>
—@imwidgeHere's what fans heard at the <a href="https://twitter.com/REDBLACKS">@REDBLACKS</a> game during the CF-18 fly-by: <a href="http://t.co/QTyMLpiuCA">http://t.co/QTyMLpiuCA</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Ottawa?src=hash">#Ottawa</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ottnews?src=hash">#ottnews</a> <a href="https://t.co/q5CKqCNXLv">https://t.co/q5CKqCNXLv</a>
—@CBCOttawaThe RCAF said it flew no lower than 152 metres above the highest point of its route before returning to 3 Wing Bagotville.
"Folks, we regret that anyone was unaware of this fly-by in advance," the air force tweeted.
"A public service announcement did go out to all media Tuesday morning. In addition, we also put it out on our Twitter three days in a row, and on Facebook twice. We do 'tag' media on Twitter and Facebook, but there is a lot of news for them to choose between."
"Unfortunately clearly some people were not aware, and we regret any upset or inconvenience that may have been caused for some of you."
Redblacks also apologize
Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group, which owns the Redblacks, also issued a statement acknowledging that — while they followed proper protocols to get approval for the CF-18 fly-by — the team could have better notified people who live near TD Place Stadium.
"All CFL teams hold one such ceremony once per season and our focus was on doing our best to let [Canadian Armed] Forces members know we support them and to give our fans an opportunity to salute them," said CEO Bernie Ashe in the statement.
"In hindsight, we should have done a better job of taking into account the ceremony's impact on surrounding neighbourhoods. For that, we apologize."
The Redblacks tweeted Thursday night they had permission from the city's bylaw office before setting up the fly-by during the game, which saw Ottawa beat Montreal 39-17.
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Social media reaction
Did you hear those fighter jets fly by? Wow. That was intense. You could feel the roar for about 2-3 mins <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ottawa?src=hash">#ottawa</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/centretown?src=hash">#centretown</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/glebe?src=hash">#glebe</a>
—@_LMay_These fighter jets whizzing at low levels over Ottawa are freaking me the hell out.
—@_EmilieLaWHY ARE THESE JETS FLYING SO LOW IN OTTAWA I FLEW OFF MY COUCH MAN ???? <a href="https://twitter.com/JimWatsonOttawa">@JimWatsonOttawa</a>
—@awinonurAnybody living in Ottawa just hear fighter jets flying super low overhead? Scared the shit out of me. I hope there’s no security threat.
—@RusselProuse34Holy fighter jets Batman <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ottawa?src=hash">#ottawa</a>
—@KyleHueserSo it's totally unsettling when (not sure what kind but I'm assuming military) jets fly over Ottawa at high speed. ✈️
—@ZoeSTodd