What to know about the Snowbirds, Fleet Week's new stars

State of play: Fleet Week's popular waterfront air show takes place between the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz, featuring stunning formations and daring maneuvers across the city.

• The Snowbirds will return for the first time since 2017.

Zoom in: The Snowbirds fly in nine- and seven-plane formations, including one based on Canada's flag symbol, the maple leaf. (The Blue Angels typically perform with six planes.)

• The Canadian aerobatics team gets up to 474 miles per hour in the air and trains in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, in central Canada.

The intrigue: Team members participate in remaking the show every year, starting with a playlist and experimenting with maneuvers that complement the songs.

• This season, they debuted the tornado, a formation inspired by their counterparts in the United Kingdom, according to CBC.
• Aviation nerds have the opportunity to meet the crew in person at the Exploratorium's After Dark event on Thursday night.

Flashback: The Snowbirds were established in 1971 after a colonel began organizing practice for formation demonstrations to provide flypasts at local football games.

• A competition among local school children in Moose Jaw resulted in Snowbirds as their formal name.
• They achieved full squadron status as No. 431 Air Demonstration Squadron in 1978.

What's next: The Snowbirds will take to the sky during this weekend's air shows, which are slated for 11:15am-4pm Friday and 11am-4pm Saturday and Sunday.

• Other activities include Fleet Fest, the Parade of Ships and military ship tours, though a tribute performance to fallen service members was canceled due to the government shutdown.
• The U.S. military remains on standby in case the shutdown ends by midweek, ABC7 News reports.