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Rare Bear at Reno, a sight that will soon become a memory only. (Photo © Damien Defever)

Sadly, this is not a bad joke or an April’s Fool. The Reno Air Racing Association (RARA), the organizer of the National Championship Air Races at Reno-Stead Airport, Nevada,  announced on 9 March that the Reno Air Races will no longer take place at the world-renowned Reno-Stead Airport after this year’s edition, from 13 to 17 September 2023.

The races have been held at Reno-Stead in Nevada since 1964, a location that saw tens of thousands of aviation and racing enthusiasts gather from around the world to enjoy the racing and notably the “Unlimited class” of racers which sees Mustangs, Sea Furies and Bearcats battling for the lead.

P-51XR « Precious Metal » powered by a Rolls-Royce Griffon engine from an Avro Shackleton. (Photo © Damien Defever)

These news may come as a surprise to many, but RARA indicate that this was inevitable, citing the region’s significant growth.

Rod Lewis’ Grumman F7F-3P Tigercat “Here Kitty, Kitty” (Photo © Damien Defever)

An alternative venue is being sought so that the National Championship Air Races may continue being held.

Many thanks Damien Defever for his photos of the Reno racers, taken in 2006 and 2010.

The full presse release can be found on the RARA’s website :

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The P-51 Mustang racer “Precious Metal”. (Photo Midland Airport (CC BY-ND 2.0))

The P-51 Mustang racer “Precious Metal”, heavily modified for racing, was seriously damaged by fire after refuelling on 8 September.

Pilot Thom Richard was able to leave the aircraft unharmed, but the Mustang was badly damaged before fire units could respond.

Following this accident, the numerous messages of support received by the Precious Metal team have convinced them to rebuild the aircraft and donations are being sought after to help rebuild the aircraft. One proposal is to offer to buy one square inch of the aircraft for $50, on which the donator’s photo will then be printed and flown around the track once the aircraft is rebuilt. Donators can purchase as many square inches as they want, and will get a bigger photo of them if they buy several.

More information about how you can help the team can be found on their Facebook page: Precious Metal Air Racing Fan Page.

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Photo Reno Tahoe (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

The Reno Air Racing Association has received a conditional approval to hold its annual races, provided it obtains insurance coverage of at least $100 million.The races should be held from September 12 to 16.

The RARA will also respond to seven security recommendations made last month by the NTSB. An in-house panel of aviation experts was also created to investigate the incident and come up with more recommendations to improve the safety of the event.

These increased safety measures are the result of the tragic accident of September 16, 2011, that cost the life of Jimmy Leeward and eleven spectators, while injuring another 69.

Source: EAA

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Photo Reno Tahoe (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Despite concerns that the Reno Air Races might disappear after last year’s tragic crash which resulted in 11 deaths and over 70 injuries, the Reno Air Racing Association has announced that it is intending to host the 49th edition of the races from September 12th to 16th. A safety panel of aviation experts will study all aspects of the race in order to improve the safety of the races. Read more about this topic on the EAA website.

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Whiteside's record-breaking Yak-3U "Steadfast" (Photo Jack Snell (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)).

On October 10, Will Whiteside broke the world speed record for an piston-engine powered aircraft of less than 6,600 lbs. This record was held since 1935 by Howard Hughes in his H1 racer, and was only broken in 2002 by an H1 replica. Flying his Yak-3U “Steadfast”, Whiteside broke the record at 407 mph, beating the H1 replica by 102 mph.

The record-breaking flight was made in Bonneville Salt Flats, Utah. It should soon be validated by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale. Whiteside, who ran at the Reno Air Race this year, flies a 2005 Yak-3U powered by a 1,750 hp Pratt & Whitney R-2000 7M2 radial engine.

Visit Team Steadfast’s website.

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"The Galloping Ghost" at the 2010 Reno Air races (Photo Photobunny (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0))

(Updated 09/19/11 @ 23:07) The heavily modified P-51 “The Galloping Ghost”, flown by 74 year-old veteran racer Jimmy Leeward, crashed in Reno yesterday at 4:20 PM, very close to the crowd. According to a recent police report, the pilot was killed upon impact and six spectators were killed by projected debris. Another two died from their wounds at the hospital. Many more were wounded. The rest of the races have been cancelled. (September 19th update: another victim died at the hospital today, raising the death toll to ten)

The reason for the crash is unknown. Videos available on the internet show the aircraft pitching up and looping before falling almost vertically in the ground close to the crowd. Leeward was a very experienced pilot and racer, who had been running at Reno for many years.

It appears Leeward declared an emergency and climbed to leave the race pattern (the usual procedure). It’s at this point that his aircraft went on its back and dived into the ground.

Photos taken seconds before the crash Pictures that appeared on the Key Publishing forum and Yahoo! News show that the elevator trim tab was lost in flight. These pictures are reminiscent of a similar incident with Bob Hannah and the P-51 “Voodoo” in 1998. His trim tab was lost in flight, pitching the nose up in a 10-G maneuver. Hannah passed out but luckily awoke flying at 9,000 ft and was able to land the airplane.

The Galloping Ghost was a heavily modified racing P-51 Mustang:

Sources:

• YouTube
• YouTube(2)
• YouTube(3)

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Jets racing at Reno (Photo Dylan Ashe (CC BY-SA 2.0))

Six aircraft that were intended to compete in the Reno Air Races’ Jet class have been banned from racing by the race officials after concerns about safety emerged.

This concerns mostly the Aero L-29 Delfin, five of which have been re-engined with Rolls-Royce Viper engines to compete with the more powerful L-39 Albatros. The sixth jet is a L-39 which is believed to have a substantially modified engine.

Concerns over the safety of these aircraft emerged earlier this year during the Pylon Racing Seminar held at Reno. The aircraft should be allowed to fly next year after these issues have been solved. Most of the pilots concerned have found stock replacement aircraft to race in.