Holiday Triumph: The Western Montana Santa Flyover Is Back for 2023

Missoula's popular and beloved holiday tradition is back for another year to delight western Montanans. Since 2020, the "elves," with the help of the Missoula Downtown Foundation, have been collecting donations to keep the spirit of a Missoula tradition alive.

Growing up in Missoula, I remember looking for the Santa flyover every year. I remember our family was driving on I90 once when Santa was flying over Missoula and thinking how magical it was that we were almost as high in the air as Santa.

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The Santa Flyover tradition ended in 2004, according to a story in the Missoulian, but was revived in 2020 by, "a group of Missoula residents (who) started a Facebook group to get more people interested in seeing Santa Fly again", as told by the Western Montana Santa Flyover Organization. Thanks to donors, donations, and the commitment of the Western Montana Santa Flyover, which is a non-profit organization, the Santa Flyover will take place again this year.

The cheer meter for 2023 is at 100% meaning that they've raised the necessary funds. A flight is scheduled for the end of this week. Here's the announcement from Facebook:

As they mention above, this will be weather dependent. The current weather predictions show patchy and freezing fog on Friday during the day as well as Friday night. The high looks to be 33 degrees with a low of 23 degrees. Keep an eye on the Santa Tracker website for the latest updates and to track Santa on his flight.

What a lovely way to head into the weekend. Watch the Santa Flyover on Friday, December 15th at 6:30 pm then get a good night's sleep so we can cheer on the Griz on Saturday afternoon.