F1 stance on Australian GP as bosses hatch plan for race to go ahead | F1 | Sport
Formula One has salvaged Sunday’s season-opening Australian Grand Prix by deploying charter aircraft to transport hundreds of stranded members of the sport’s travelling entourage to Melbourne. In the wake of travel disruption triggered by airspace closures across the Middle East, the Press Association understands that two chartered planes left London on Monday evening.
A British Airways aircraft, which made a stopover in Singapore, alongside an all-business-class Air X service via Tanzania, ferried personnel from 10 of the grid’s 11 teams plus F1 officials to Australia. Sports travel agency Travel Places orchestrated the last-minute flights. The affected staff are expected to touch down in Melbourne on Wednesday morning, just 48 hours before the season’s opening practice session at Albert Park.
Approximately 2,000 individuals are employed at each F1 race, with an estimated quarter having planned to travel to Australia through transit hubs including Doha and Dubai. Yet the Middle East conflict forced hundreds of crew members to either reroute or board chartered services. One prominent UK-based team informed PA that over half of its travelling workforce had been impacted.
China, Thailand, Korea, Japan, America, Singapore and Hong Kong have all served as alternative stopover points for those desperately attempting to reach Australia. Nevertheless, despite the upheaval, F1 chiefs are believed to be optimistic that the Melbourne race will proceed as scheduled.
An insider from the paddock told PA: “It is a great testament to the sport how they are able to pull this off at such short notice, and to get us to the other end of the world.”
After this weekend’s race in Albert Park, the sport will swiftly transition to Shanghai for the Chinese Grand Prix. A race in Japan is scheduled for 29 March, followed by two rounds in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia on 12 April and 19 April respectively.
The unrest in the Middle East casts significant doubt over these races, with F1 ‘closely monitoring’ the situation.
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An F1 spokesperson stated: “The safety and security of everyone in F1 will always be our priority. The next three races are in Australia, China and Japan, not in the Middle East – those races are not for a number of weeks.
“As always we closely monitor any situation like this and work closely with relevant authorities.”
