bz, you make a valid point regarding the impact of bod on whether winter aeration is necessary, and I do not know the answer in your specific instance. I did over-winter trout for two years successfully with only snow removal (and lots of it). My pond is less than a quarter acre with around a 100 trout from 12" to 16" at that time. My pond is also only about three years old which I believe helped. I did get around 200 days of ice cover and no fish kill.
I have since moved my family north and have rented my property (and pond) to a young couple. The husband seemed quite enthusiastic about fishing and pond maintenance. Last winter he was instructed to remove snow as part of the "deal" if he wanted to have fish to catch.
He, however did not and this spring all fish were dead. I realize you do not want to experiment and risk loosing your fish, but it did work for me.
