Thailand will become the first country in the Asia Pacific region to hold a pylon air race. The test race at U-Tapao International Airport in Rayong will take place on Nov 19-20.
Called Air Race 1, the race is the international level of the sport known as formula one air racing. The inaugural race series was held in 2014 in Lleida, Spain and by 2015 the races were held at two more locations -- the United States and Tunisia.
Air Race 1 is organised as a World Cup and other Regional or Continental Cups series. As more cities are added each year to the air racing calendar, these races will be connected together as a series with points accruing to crown an overall series champion.
As part of the World Cup series 2017, the event in Thailand will be called Air Race 1: Race of Thailand. The event will have top pilots from around the world to compete on the tight circuit just 10m above the ground. It is pure air racing in which eight aeroplanes race simultaneously at speeds of 450kph vying to cross the finish line first after 10 laps, each lap is 5km in distance.
"Thailand is truly innovating and pioneering in sports tourism. We are proud to be able to introduce something that is not only new to Thailand, but new to the entire continent," said Air Race 1 CEO Jeff Zaltman.
The pre-race event is to show the readiness of the facility and might feature up to six aeroplanes. The full competition, which will take place next year however, is expected to see 24 aircraft.
"We are very happy to have won a bid to host this unique event. The international air race will fit well with our policy, which is to host international sport events to promote tourism," said the Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul.
In addition, the government also wanted to promote facilities of U-Tapao International Airport, as well as to mark the 50th anniversary of the establishment of Asean, which was founded in 1967 in Bangkok with the first international air race event in the region, she said.
The total budget to host the event is around 100 million baht, of which 79 million baht is sponsored by the government and the rest is funded by private sectors.
Apart from the air racing show, there will also be Thai boxing fights, as well as the Thong Fa (Blue Flag) fair to provide low-priced daily use products for consumers.
The minister expects the pre-event will attract up to 50,000 audience. And during the full race to be organised in November next year, the number is expected to double, generating up to 3.4 billion baht in revenue.
-- Karnjana Karnjanatawe
Admission fee is 3,000 and 5,000 baht. Visit www.airrace1.com or www.facebook.com/airraceone or call U-Tapao International Airport at 038-245-595 or 038-245-600.
Winners of last year's competition in Nevada. AirRace1
