Exploring the deep-rooted history of 429 Squadron and the City of Lethbridge

You may have seen a Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) cargo plane flying above Lethbridge yesterday. You likely also noticed that it was November 11.

But have you ever wondered why the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) 429 Bison Transport Squadron and the C-17 Globemaster perform a flyover at Lethbridge’s Remembrance Day ceremony nearly every year?

The 429 Squadron began in 1942 as a strategic aviation RCAF resource. In June 1944, Lethbridge City Council approved the adoption of the Squadron by the City of Lethbridge. In adopting the unit, Council urged “public organizations to send cigarettes and other gifts to members of the squadron which will now carry Lethbridge’s name through the skies of Europe.” Council also approved $50 for supplies.

“We are so thrilled and grateful that Lethbridge has this enduring, ongoing and meaningful affiliation with the 429 Squadron,” says Mayor Blaine Hyggen. “We certainly are fortunate to have these annual C-17 flyovers on Remembrance Day here in our city.”

“This is very unique and we are very fortunate to have this connection that dates back to the Second World War,” says Matthew McHugh of the Lethbridge Remembrance Day Committee. “Another big reason we still get the C-17 flyover is because of Lieutenant-Colonel (retired) Wayne King, who lives in Lethbridge and who was the Commanding Officer of 429 Squadron. He has been the main link between Lethbridge and the Squadron throughout the years.”

The 429 Squadron was disbanded in 1946, following the Second World War, but was reformed in 1967 as a tactical transport unit. In 1968, the Squadron was integrated into the CAF as the air navigation and instrument rating squadron. Reorganization in 1981 returned the 429 Squadron into a transportation role. In 1990, they were moved to Canadian Forces Base Trenton in Ontario, where they are still based today.

The Squadron was reunited with the City of Lethbridge in 2008, when the Squadron was granted the ‘Freedom of the Sky’ – essentially an open invite to visit anytime. On Remembrance Day 2017, a monument to the “enduring friendship between 429 Squadron and the City of Lethbridge” was unveiled outside Lethbridge City Hall.

The C-17, also known as the CC-177 Globemaster III, flew above the 2026 Lethbridge Remembrance Day ceremony at the Cenotaph at 3,700 feet. Watch our social media reel from November 11 to see a first-person view from inside the cockpit.

The RCAF has five Globemasters in its fleet and the C-17 flying above Lethbridge on Wednesday was the 702, sharing a name with our local Royal Canadian Air Force Association 702 Wing. Local Air Cadets and members of Lethbridge City Council were among those invited to tour the plane in a static display at Lethbridge Airport following its fly-bys.

The strategic airlifter transports troops, cargo and oversized combat equipment. It can also land in remote airfields, making it a premier transporter for military, humanitarian and peacekeeping missions. The C-17 has a flight range of more than 10,000 kilometres, weighs 128 tons without cargo and measures 53 metres long with a wingspan of nearly 52 metres.