In the Red Bull Air Race World Championships, the goal is to go head-to-head against 14 of the world’s best race pilots to complete a course of 25-meter high air gates in highly maneuverable, lightweight planes as quickly as possible. If you happen to brush one of the inflatable pylons, you incur penalty seconds. The pylons tear immediately on contact. Of course, Hannes Arch wouldn’t be a Red Bull Race Champion if he didn’t constantly search for new challenges. Gazing on the Tauern Wind Park in his Styrian homeland, the native of Trofaiach had often played with the idea of attempting a slalom flight in Oberzeiring: “If, as a Red Bull Air Race pilot, you have such a windfarm at your front door and fly past it, it’s no wonder that you also want to fly through it at some point!” Wind turbines don’t bend, and that’s precisely why the idea of flying in between such massive “gates” had such an irresistible appeal for the Austrian pilot. He assures us:  “Respect is of ultimate importance, and without my experience as a Red Bull Air Race pilot I would never have given flying between them a second thought.” The Tauern Wind Park lies at 1900 meters above sea level and, with its 14 wind turbines, is the highest windfarm in Austria, also one of the highest in the world.

With official permission from the authorities in consultation with Wind Park management, and after intensive preparations, just a few days ago Hannes Arch finally powered his way between the 60 meters-high wind turbines in the Niedere Tauern mountains, realizing the wish he had been nurturing for so long. After the flight at over 300 km/h and stresses on his body of as much as 6 G, the Styrian was absolutely beaming as one of the few, if not the first person ever to fly a slalom route through a wind park: “I don’t know if a pilot has ever done anything comparable. Regardless, I am super happy that I was privileged to have such an experience”, and the Austrian continues: “One of the greatest challenges in comparison to the Red Bull Air Race is having to adapt far more to the natural conditions. In the middle of the mountains, you are rising and falling. You can’t fly as close to the obstacles, which increases the radius, and, at around 300 km/h, things can get a bit tight. Every second, you have to be perfectly clear in your mind that you have wind turbines in front of you and need to know precisely what you are going to do next. Though it has nothing to do with the Red Bull Air Race, it’s every bit as much fun, with the added benefit that it’s not about the time you clock. Things will get really serious again at the next race in Spielberg!”

Hannes Arch loves his home region, the mountains and flying – all of which came together in the premiere of the “Wind Park Rally” in Oberzeiring. For the passionate pilot, this flight was a perfect change of pace in order to clear his mind for the next important race. The anticipation of his fans and the atmosphere at the Red Bull Ring are a real motivator for Hannes Arch, of course. Plus, the local hero still has an account to settle at the Spielberg. He wants to celebrate the home victory he has sought for so long, having missed out on the 2014 World Championship title by a whisker, and touching the first pylon in last year’s race, which immediately put him out of contention. Awaiting fans in Spielberg on 23/24 April will be an enthralling motorsports competition along with a first-class program of side events. Tickets and complete information are available at www.redbullairrace.com/de_AT/event/spielberg-2016. 

“From Abu Dhabi I must take the positive side with me, the entry in the final 4 and the second best time of the day.  One can build up on this”, says Hannes Arch after the first race and his preparation for the season.  The groundwork concerned less the plane, on which no great modifications were made, but mainly the body and mental ability of Hannes.  He trained for many hours in the mountains for this purpose.  This investment in body and soul, as well as the time he spent with his partner and his family gave him new energy for concentration and reflection for the 2016 season.

During the winter the newly composed team invested a lot of time in analysis, for the plane is in itself   fast, but it takes more than just having a good machine.  Data management, technicalities, mental training, body fitness, in end effect all this supports the fact that Hannes is fast in the air when necessary.

“Our team achieved top work, now we must take this drive with us to Spielberg”, says the optimistic Styrian who looks forward to his home race at the end of April.  With a second stop on 23^rd and 24^th April, the Red Bull Air Race returns again to the Red Bull Ring which naturally pleases Hannes especially.  “It is always great for me to fly at home although after the last two races there, I have an account open, but that motivates me even more, to be able to give my best for all my true fans!  For me it is my home race as I come from Styria and grew up not far from Spielberg.  Irrespective of the fact that the track really suits me, we fly at different levels, there are trees between so particularly difficult, but also the course is very exciting to fly.   Sometimes the wind in Spielberg plays a big factor, as a gust of wind can strongly influence the race, much as was clear in 2015.  The race in Spielberg is always very emotional for me because there are so many fans present.  Also my family and many friends are there who push me even more with their enthusiasm”, says with pleasure Austria´s fastest pilot on the Austria stop of the series.

The Red Bull Air Race in Spielberg is so special for the fans because the whole race can be closely followed as it happens directly in front of the eyes of the spectators.  Not only do you feel the emotion live but also the impressive speed,  precision and reaction which is required of the pilot, when at 400 km an hour he roars through the pylons.  Also the position of the Race Airport, which lies directly on the track, makes it still more exciting for the fans as the pilots here are nearer to the fans as by many other locations.  Additionally the spectators are offered a super all-round programme for the time when there is nothing happening in the air, for there is a full programme of entertainment for the whole family.

The first of “Round of 14” of the Red Bull Air Race World Championships 2016 in Abu Dhabi had a number of hidden surprises. Whilst Martin Sonka (CZE) and the World Champion of 2014, Nigel Lamb (GB) did not survive the first round due to difficult mistakes, the Frenchman Francois Le Vot  was able to gain points with a faultless run as “Fastest Loser”. The Austrian Hannes Arch made it really exciting.   In a direct duel with Juan Velarde (ESP), it looked like a calculated  lead for the Styrian up until shortly before the end of his run due to the incorrect passing of Air Gate 13, two penalty seconds were given and the Spaniard with anmextremely small margin of a seventh hundred of a second took over the lead. The top favourite in the fight for the WM title had less luck. 
In the “Round of 8” Hannes Arch met with US American Michael Goulian. The Styrian kept a cool head, and with a faultless flight, laid down a good time.  Goulian gave his best, remained without penalty, but could not break the time of Hannes Arch.
For his final debut Le Vot had the exercise in Abu Dhabi to lay down a top time, the Frenchman had however to pocket  a two second penalty. Hannes Arch went in as second into the race, but was not rewarded for his full commitment. The Styrian passed over the safety line, was disqualified and ended his racing day outside the point scala. Matthias Dolderer and Nicolas Ivanoff then gave a thrilling battle for the win which the Frenchman very closely won. 
Focus for Hannes Arch fully concentrated on Spielberg. The Austrian Hannes Arch did not leave a good track in Abu Dhabi, but took it with good humor  “I must just grin a little, because I had reservations right from the beginning about the course. Today I kept to the G-craft- limit. When you do not pull, then you turn to the crowd line over which I then flew. Therefore something was not quite right with the track. Congratulations to Nicolas, Matthias and Francois, who all made well of the situation. My focus is now fully on Spielberg, where I would naturally like to fly on the podium at home and I would like to tell my fans that I will give my best!” 

All information of this home race with Hannes Arch in Spielberg (23/24^th April) and tickets at www.redbullairrace.com/de_AT/event/spielberg-2016.

For the 9^th time consecutively, Abu Dhabi will host the kick-off event of the Red Bull Air Race season, just as it has become tradition over the course of the previous years. The breath-taking skyline of the UAE capital offers the perfect backdrop for this spectacular competition. 14 of the world’s best pilots will rush through the air gates at the Arabian Gulf in their fast race planes that fly at speeds of up to 370 kph. The biggest challenge for man and machine is the high temperature under the desert sun.

After the retirement of reigning world champion Paul Bonhomme (GBR), the 2016 Red Bull Air Race World Championship is a whole new game. Apart from Hannes, some other pilots are in the mix for the title, such as Australian Matt Hall who missed the title by 5 points in 2015, or Martin Sonka from the Czech Republic who has been a constant in the top rankings in previous years. But Hannes is highly motivated and will do everything to finally win his longed-for second title. At Abu Dhabi, he had some good experiences in the past: “I like the first race of the season because it’s mentally challenging. There’s lot of unknowns, and that’s something I can deal with quite well.” His goal is clear: “I want to reach the finals without any penalty.” His slogan for the race is to “stay cool” as it “is always quite hot at Abu Dhabi!”

All races will be broadcast live on www.redbullairrace.com.

The Red Bull Air Race World Championship will mark its ninth season in 2016 with two exciting new stops where fans are passionate about motorsports: the famed Lausitzring in Germany and the U.S. city of Indianapolis, Indiana, home to the Indianapolis 500 that’s renowned as part of the “Triple Crown” of auto racing. 

In a season that spans seven countries over eight races, the enthralling motorsport series will also captivate spectators at stops that have already become favorites in the calendar.

It all kicks off on March 11/12, with the traditional season opener over the Arabian Gulf in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates for the ninth straight time. Next up, the action is back at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Austria – one of the highlight venues in the Formula One calendar on 23/24 April, as it will be Hannes Arch home race again.

The high-speed, low-altitude race will then return to Japan, following the overwhelming success of the debut race in 2015 that sold out across the weekend.

The Championship then moves to Budapest, Hungary on July 16/17 where the racetrack’s 25-meter-high pylons are set up in the heart of the city, contrasting with the stunning backdrop of the Parliament Building, a location which has hosted seven races.

On August 13/14, the setting is Ascot in England, the renowned horse-racing track that has proven to be one of the all-time favorite stops in the history of the sport, before the series makes that breathlessly anticipated return to the Lausitzring on September 3/4, where fans will be able to savor a race in Germany for the first time since 2010.

Once again the final two races of the season will be in North America; first, on October 1/2, with the Red Bull Air Race premiere at Indianapolis, a sport-loving city in the country’s heartland where motorsport is king. The season finale happens on October 15/16 in Las Vegas, Nevada, where the new World Champion will be crowned at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

“We look forward to bringing the race closer to even more fans in 2016, and it will be a privilege to share our sport at two more locations that are rich with motorsport history,” said Erich Wolf, General Manager of Red Bull Air Race GmbH. “The pilots and teams are already hard at work on technical innovations and strategic plans, and the races at all eight stops promise to be faster and more competitive than ever. The year ahead should be thrilling for spectators and competitors alike.”



Ticketing for the 2016 season of the Red Bull Air Race World Championship will begin in mid December. Tickets for Red Bull Air Race in Spielberg are available under www.gpticketshop.com/de/redbullairrace/red-bull-air-race-spielberg/tickets.html. For more information on tickets or the latest, visit www.redbullairrace.com

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 2016 Race Calendar:

1. Abu Dhabi, UAE                      11/12 March

2. Spielberg, Austria                   23/24 April

3. Chiba, Japan                           4/5 May

4. Budapest, Hungary                 16/17 July

5. Ascot, Great Britain                13/14 August

6. Lausitzring, Germany              3/4 September 

7. Indianapolis, Indiana, USA      1/2 October 

8. Las Vegas, Nevada, USA          15/16 October