F1 chartering flights to Australian GP amid Middle East conflict
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The Australian Grand Prix is scheduled for March 8 in Melbourne, with many travelling affected by airspace closure in the Middle East.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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MELBOURNE - With the ongoing conflict in the Middle East causing widespread disruptions to travel,
Approximately 1,500 paddock personnel – including team staff, race organisers and officials, and media and hospitality personnel – typically attend such a race, scheduled for Mar 8 at Melbourne’s Albert Park track.
Many of these were scheduled to pass through airports in the Middle East, which serve as major worldwide transportation hubs, including Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates and Doha in Qatar.
Retaliatory missile strikes continued to shake the region after the United States and Israel launched an attack on Iran on Feb 28, leading to temporary closures of airspace around these countries and causing a large percentage of flights in the area to be canceled.
“You’re talking about teams, drivers, Formula 1 personnel,” Australian GP CEO Travis Auld told Australian network Channel Nine. “I’m guessing there’d be close to 1,000 people that would have already booked their flights and would be landing somewhere between sort of today, tomorrow, Wednesday.
“So they had to all be changed, but a lot of people around the world are on the same thing and so you’re competing obviously with that increase in demand. But they’ve been able to sort it out is the important part.”
All equipment needed to conduct the race had already been sent to Melbourne ahead of the attacks.
“All the freight is here and ready to go and so we’re in a space where we’re really confident there’ll be no impact (on the race by the travel disruption from the conflict),” added Auld. “The drivers will be here, the engineers will be here, the team principals will be here – they’re the ones that have been prioritized.”
Sunday’s race kicks off the F1 season, which then goes to China and Japan before heading to the Middle East for races in Bahrain (April 12) and Saudi Arabia (April 19). REUTERS
