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UPDATE: Flyover cancelled, but other Remembrance Day plans to proceed

Nov 9, 2017 | 8:53 AM

LETHBRIDGE – The city announced Thursday, Nov. 9 that the flypast by the Globemaster scheduled for Remembrance Day services in Lethbridge has been cancelled, due to a “change in operational requirements.” All other plans will proceed.

The Remembrance Day service will take place Saturday, Nov. 11 at the South Pavilion, Lethbridge Exhibition Park. People are asked to be seated by 9:30 a.m. The indoor ceremony will include a 105mm howitzer gun salute provided by the 20th Independent Field Battery.

That will be followed by the noon-hour service at the Cenotaph outside City Hall. The Globemaster aircraft will conduct a flypast at around 12:15 p.m. People are asked to observe the tape, due to construction at the nearby Yates Theatre.

The services will mark the 100th anniversaries of the Battle of Vimy Ridge and Passchendaele, according to a news release from the General Stewart Branch No. 4 of the Royal Canadian Legion.

They will also observe the 75th anniversary of the 429 Transport Squadron. Established in 1942, the squadron was adopted by the City of Lethbridge two years later. Members serving in England were sent care packages from Lethbridge residents, as they earned honours that included 45 Distinguished Flying Crosses, and ten battle honours for the squadron itself.

The relationship between the city and squadron has continued over the years, including a trophy that is now displayed in the Lethbridge Military Museum, and the granting of the Freedom of the City in 2008.

A monument honouring the relationship between Lethbridge and 429 Squadron will be unveiled adjacent to the Cenotaph, on the north side of City Hall.