by Natasha Lair
Last updated: 10:35 AM ET, Mon December 22, 2025
Operation Christmas Drop 2025, Guam (Photo Credit: Facebook: @OperationChristmasDrop)
Canada’s aviation community is showing that giving extends far beyond the living room tree.
Who needs Hallmark when real-life feel-good stories like these are flying in this holiday season?
Operation Christmas Drop: Love From Above
The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) recently joined allies from the U.S., Japan, and South Korea for Operation Christmas Drop, the world’s longest-running humanitarian airlift.
Operation Christmas Drop 2025 (Photo Credit: Facebook: @OperationChristmasDrop)
According to RCAF, between December 3 and 16, 2025, crews delivered over 82,000 pounds of supplies to 59 remote islands, helping more than 56,000 people in Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, and Palau.
Aboard a C-130J Hercules aircraft from 8 Wing Trenton, the airdropped crates contained everything from fishing nets, construction materials, canned goods, and clothing to school supplies and toys.
“This mission is about more than aid — it’s about working as one team, building trust, and honing skills like precision airdrops, low-level flying, and rapid response,” the RCAF said in a Facebook post.
Love from above (Photo Credit: Facebook: @OperationChristmasDrop)
“Every drop reflects our commitment to readiness and compassion, ensuring help arrives when it’s needed most. Because sometimes, support really does come from above.”
RELATED: Lost Jellycat Bunny Reveals Heart of WestJet
First conducted in 1951, Operation Christmas Drop began when a U.S. Air Force crew on a B-29 Superfortress noticed islanders waving and improvised a gift drop. Decades later, it has grown into a multinational effort.
Closer to home, RCAF aircraft transported Santa to hospitals in remotes areas of the country. There, he handed out gifts to children during Operation HOHOHO.
NORAD Tracks Santa: A Holiday Tradition Born by Accident
Canadians can see the magic of military precision in action through NORAD Tracks Santa.
In its 70th year in 2025, the tradition is attributed to a happy accident in 1955, when a misprinted phone number in a Colorado newspaper connected children to the Continental Air Defense Command, NORAD’s predecessor, instead of Santa.
Rather than disappoint the callers, the officers on duty gave live updates on Santa’s whereabouts. Since then, it has grown into a high-tech holiday tradition, using the same radars, satellites, and fighter jets that protect North America every day.
In memory of retired U.S Col. Harry Shoup, NORAD’s first Santa tracker, who passed away in 2009, NORAD continues to escort Santa and report his location each Christmas Eve.
Children can follow along online or by phone at NORADSanta.org, combining the excitement of watching Santa’s journey unfold with a lesson in aerospace defense.
Canadian Airlines Annual Giving
- WestJet’s Christmas Miracle. This year, more than 700 WestJetters volunteered to shop, wrap, and deliver gifts to 16 Ronald McDonald House locations, bringing presents to over 600 families with critically sick children and even leveraging WestJet Cargo to ensure everything arrived on time.
- In past years, WestJet’s campaigns have also reunited travelling families with loved ones around the world and across Canada.
- Air Canada supports charitable giving through its Dreams Take Flight program, a volunteer‑driven initiative that has given thousands of children facing adversity the chance to experience magical trips and adventures. This holiday season’s campaign, Holiday Dreams Take Flight, was powered by Air Canada employees and volunteers
- Air Canada and its foundation also support programs that help sick children access care and offer passengers ways to donate through in‑flight and lounge fundraising efforts year‑round.
Topics From This Article to Explore
