
Air racing is a type of
motorsport
Motorsport or motor sport are sporting events, competitions and related activities that primarily involve the use of Car, automobiles, motorcycles, motorboats and Aircraft, powered aircraft. For each of these vehicle types, the more specific term ...
that involves
airplane
An airplane (American English), or aeroplane (Commonwealth English), informally plane, is a fixed-wing aircraft that is propelled forward by thrust from a jet engine, Propeller (aircraft), propeller, or rocket engine. Airplanes come in a vari ...
s or other types of
aircraft
An aircraft ( aircraft) is a vehicle that is able to flight, fly by gaining support from the Atmosphere of Earth, air. It counters the force of gravity by using either Buoyancy, static lift or the Lift (force), dynamic lift of an airfoil, or, i ...
that compete over a fixed course, with the winner either returning the shortest time, the one to complete it with the most points, or to come closest to a previously estimated time.
History
The first 'heavier-than-air' air race was held on 23 May
1909 - the
Prix de Lagatinerie, at the
Port-Aviation aerodrome
An aerodrome, airfield, or airstrip is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for public or private use. Aerodromes inc ...
(often called "Juvisy Airfield") in
Viry-Châtillon south of
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, France. Four pilots entered the race, two started, but nobody completed the full race distance; though this was not unexpected, as the rules specified that whoever travelled furthest would be the winner if no-one completed the race.
Léon Delagrange
Ferdinand Marie Léon Delagrange (; 13 March 1872 – 4 January 1910) was a French sculptor and pioneering aviator.
Early years
Léon Delagrange was born on 13 March 1872 in Orléans, France, the son of a textile factory owner. As a teenager ...
, who covered slightly more than half of the ten laps was declared the winner.
Some other minor events were held before the ''
Grande Semaine d'Aviation de la Champagne'' in 22–29 August 1909 at
Reims
Reims ( ; ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French Departments of France, department of Marne (department), Marne, and the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, 12th most populous city in Fran ...
, France. This was the first major international flying event, drawing the most important aircraft makers and pilots of the era, as well as celebrities and royalty. The premier event — the first
Gordon Bennett Trophy competition — was won by
Glenn Curtiss
Glenn Hammond Curtiss (May 21, 1878 – July 23, 1930) was an American aviation and motorcycling pioneer, and a founder of the U.S. aircraft industry. He began his career as a bicycle racer and builder before moving on to motorcycles. As early a ...
, who beat second-place finisher
Louis Blériot by five seconds. Curtiss was named 'Champion Air Racer of the World'.
The first air race in the United States was the
1910 Los Angeles International Air Meet at Dominguez Field, just south of Los Angeles, from 10 to 20 January
1910. The event was organised by pilots
A. Roy Knabenshue and Charles Willard, who raised funding from railroad magnate
Henry Huntington, and the Los Angeles Merchants and Manufacturers Association.
William Randolph Hearst
William Randolph Hearst (; April 29, 1863 – August 14, 1951) was an American newspaper publisher and politician who developed the nation's largest newspaper chain and media company, Hearst Communications. His extravagant methods of yellow jou ...
carried coverage of the event in his ''
Los Angeles Examiner'', and hired a hot air balloon with a promotional parse touting his newspaper. The event attracted 43 entrants, of which 16 appeared. It was there that aviation pioneer and military pilot
Jimmy Doolittle, then thirteen, saw his first airplane.
In the years before the
First World War
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, popular interest in
aviation
Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' include fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air aircraft such as h ...
led to a large number of air races in Europe; including the
1911 Circuit of Europe race, the
Daily Mail Circuit of Britain Air Race, and the
Aerial Derby.
In
1913
Events January
* January – Joseph Stalin travels to Vienna to research his ''Marxism and the National Question''. This means that, during this month, Stalin, Hitler, Trotsky and Tito are all living in the city.
* January 3 &ndash ...
, the first
Schneider Trophy seaplane race was held. When the competition was resumed after the war, it was significant in advancing
aeroplane design, particularly in the fields of
aerodynamics
Aerodynamics () is the study of the motion of atmosphere of Earth, air, particularly when affected by a solid object, such as an airplane wing. It involves topics covered in the field of fluid dynamics and its subfield of gas dynamics, and is an ...
and
engine
An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy.
Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power ge ...
design, and would show its results in the best
fighters of World War II.
On 19 October
1919, the
Army Transcontinental Air Race began along a route from
Long Island, New York
Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...
to
San Francisco, California
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
, and back, which would see widespread carnage; including seven fatalities (two en route to the race). Of the 48 aircraft that started, 33 would complete the double crossing of the continent.

In
1921
Events
January
* January 2
** The Association football club Cruzeiro Esporte Clube, from Belo Horizonte, is founded as the multi-sports club Palestra Italia by Italian expatriates in First Brazilian Republic, Brazil.
** The Spanish lin ...
, the United States instituted the National Air Meets, which became the
National Air Races in
1924. In
1929, the
Women's Air Derby, nicknamed the 'Powder Puff Derby', became a part of the National Air Races circuit. The National Air Races lasted until
1949
Events
January
* January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2025
* January 2 – Luis ...
. The
Cleveland Air Races was another important event. In
1947
It was the first year of the Cold War, which would last until 1991, ending with the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Events
January
* January–February – Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom: The worst snowfall in the country i ...
, an All-Woman Transcontinental Air Race, also dubbed the
Powder Puff Derby was established, running until
1977
Events January
* January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group.
* January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...
.
In
1934
Events
January–February
* January 1 – The International Telecommunication Union, a specialist agency of the League of Nations, is established.
* January 15 – The 8.0 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake, Nepal–Bihar earthquake strik ...
, the
MacRobertson Air Race from England to Australia took place, with the winning
de Havilland Comet
The de Havilland DH.106 Comet is the world's first commercial jet airliner. Developed and manufactured by de Havilland in the United Kingdom, the Comet 1 prototype first flew in 1949. It features an aerodynamically clean design with four ...
flown by
C. W. A. Scott and
Tom Campbell Black.

In
1964
Events January
* January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved.
* January 5 – In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patria ...
,
Bill Stead, a
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...
rancher, pilot, and unlimited
hydroplane racing
Hydroplane racing (also known as hydro racing) is a sport involving racing hydroplanes on lakes, rivers, and bays. It is a popular spectator sport in several countries.
Racing circuits
International professional outboard hydroplane racing
The ...
champion, organised the first
Reno Air Races
The Reno Air Races, or Roswell Air Races, officially known as the National Championship Air Races, are a multi-day event tailored to the aviation community that took place each September at the Reno Stead Airport a few miles north of Reno, ...
at a small dirt strip called the Sky Ranch, located between
Sparks, Nevada, and
Pyramid Lake. The National Championship Air Races were soon moved to the
Reno Stead Airport, and have been held there every September since
1966
Events January
* January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko.
* January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...
. The five-day event attracts around 200,000 people, and includes racing around courses marked out by pylons for six classes of aircraft: Unlimited,
Formula One
Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...
, Sport Biplane, AT-6, Sport, and Jet. It also features civil airshow acts, military flight demonstrations, and a large static aircraft display. Other promoters have run pylon racing events across the US and Canada, including races in Las Vegas, NV in
1965
Events January–February
* January 14 – The First Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years.
* January 20
** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lynd ...
, Lancaster, CA in 1965 and 1966,
Mojave, California in 1970-71, and 1973–79; at Cape May, NJ in 1971, San Diego, CA in 1971, Miami, FL in 1973 and 1979,
Moose Jaw
Moose Jaw is the List of cities in Saskatchewan, fourth largest city in Saskatchewan, Canada. Lying on the Moose Jaw River in the south-central part of the province, it is situated on the Trans-Canada Highway, west of Regina, Saskatchewan, Re ...
,
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...
in 1984;
Hamilton Field, California, in 1988; at Dallas, TX in 1990, in Denver, CO in 1990 and 1992, in Kansas City in 1993, in
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...
in 1994 and 1995; and in
Tunica, Mississippi in 2005. Numerous other venues across the United States, Canada, and Mexico have also hosted events featuring the smaller Formula One and Biplane classes.
In
1970
Events
January
* January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC.
* January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...
, American Formula One racing was exported to Europe (Great Britain, and then to France), where almost as many races have been held as in the U.S.A. Also in 1970, the
California 1000 Air Race started at the
Mojave Airport with a 66 lap unlimited air race that featured a
Douglas DC-7, with one aircraft completing the circuit.

In 2003,
Red Bull
Red Bull is a brand of energy drinks created and owned by the Austrian company Red Bull GmbH. With a market share of 43%, it is the most popular energy drink brand as of 2020, and the third most valuable soft drink brand, behind Coca-Cola and ...
created a series called the
Red Bull Air Race World Championship, in which competitors flew individually between pairs of pylons, while performing prescribed manoeuvres. Usually held over water near large cities, the sport has attracted large crowds and renewed media interest in air racing. The inaugural season had stops in Austria and Hungary. In 2019, Red Bull decided not to continue the Red Bull Air Race World Championship.
Aero GP has multiple aircraft racing together pik around pylons, and is based in Europe where it has held an air race each year since
2005
2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...
.
In June 2005 against all odds and extreme pressure from the Reno Air Race Association not to start another race, entrepreneur Jeff Landers, a Memphis native, organized the Tunica Air Races in Tunica, Mississippi with Unlimited, T-6, and Sport classes represented. After the successful and safe race in 2005 RARA fought any and all efforts for the growth of this motorsport and any effort for a 2006 race there and one in Tucson Arizona.
Powered paragliding
Powered paragliding, also known as paramotoring or PPG, is a form of ultralight aviation where the pilot wears a back-pack motor (a paramotor) which provides enough thrust to take off using a paraglider. It can be launched in still air, and on ...
or
paramotor
Paramotor is the generic name for the harness and propulsive portion of a powered paragliding, powered paraglider ("PPG"). There are two basic types of paramotors: foot launch and wheel launch.
Foot launch models consist of a frame with harnes ...
races have been organised by the Parabatix Sky Racers made up of the world's top paramotor pilots. The first occurring on 4 September
2010
The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
in an airfield in
Montauban
Montauban (, ; ) is a commune in the southern French department of Tarn-et-Garonne. It is the capital of the department and lies north of Toulouse. Montauban is the most populated town in Tarn-et-Garonne, and the sixth most populated of Oc ...
, Southern France. These are foot-launched ram-air wings powered by small
two-stroke engine
A two-stroke (or two-stroke cycle) engine is a type of internal combustion engine that completes a Thermodynamic power cycle, power cycle with two strokes of the piston, one up and one down, in one revolution of the crankshaft in contrast to a f ...
s, and allow for much smaller race venues such as city parks or beaches, where the audience can see the pilots up close as they carry out spectacular manoeuvres swooping close to the ground-pylons during the race.
In November 2021, the first remotely-piloted
eVTOL
An electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft is a variety of VTOL (vertical take-off and landing) aircraft that uses electric power to hover, takeoff and landing, take off, and land vertically. This technology came about owing to m ...
drag race between two
Airspeeder craft took place. In
2022
The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...
, The remotely-piloted racing series (Airspeeder EXA Series) began in 2022 with Zephatali Walsh named as the inaugural season champion. The aircraft, built by Alauda Aeronautics, use electric vertical take-off and landing (
eVTOL
An electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft is a variety of VTOL (vertical take-off and landing) aircraft that uses electric power to hover, takeoff and landing, take off, and land vertically. This technology came about owing to m ...
) technology and are designed to be crewed by human pilots.
Historical championships
Active air races
Classes
Restricting aircraft to a specific type or design creates a competition that focuses on pilot skill. Air racing events such as the Reno air races, incorporate multiple classes or aircraft. These may be defined by the race organiser, or by a sanctioned group. Some air races are limited to a single class.
[ ] Classes used at the Reno races are as follows:
Notable racing pilots
*
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Antoine Marie Jean-Baptiste Roger, vicomte de Saint-Exupéry (29 June 1900 – 31 July 1944), known simply as Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (, , ), was a French writer, poet, journalist and aviator.
Born in Lyon to an French nobility, aristocratic ...
*
Pancho Barnes
*
Lowell Bayles
*
André Beaumont
*
Péter Besenyei
*
Louis Bleriot
*
Paul Bonhomme
*
Alan Cobham
*
Jacqueline Cochran
*
Glenn Curtiss
Glenn Hammond Curtiss (May 21, 1878 – July 23, 1930) was an American aviation and motorcycling pioneer, and a founder of the U.S. aircraft industry. He began his career as a bicycle racer and builder before moving on to motorcycles. As early a ...
*
Geoffrey de Havilland
Captain (British Army and Royal Marines), Captain Sir Geoffrey de Havilland, (27 July 1882 – 21 May 1965) was an English aviation pioneer and aerospace engineer. De Havilland, The aircraft company he founded produced the de Havilland Mosquit ...
*
Geoffrey de Havilland Jr.
*
Jimmy Doolittle
*
Amelia Earhart
Amelia Mary Earhart ( ; July 24, 1897 – January 5, 1939) was an American aviation pioneer. On July 2, 1937, she disappeared over the Pacific Ocean while attempting to become the first female pilot to circumnavigate the world. During her li ...
*
Roland Garros
*
Eugene Gilbert
*
Claude Grahame-White
*
Gustav Hamel
*
Harry Hawker
*
Frank Hawks
*
Alex Henshaw
*
Steve Hinton
*
Skip Holm
*
Benny Howard
*
Amy Johnson
*
Hubert Latham
*
Tony LeVier
*
Johnny Livingston
*
Mike Mangold
*
Paul Mantz
*
Jim Mollison
*
John Moisant
*
Blanche Noyes
*
Adolphe Pégoud
*
John Cyril Porte
Lieutenant Colonel John Cyril Porte, (26 February 1884 – 22 October 1919) was a British flying boat aviation pioneer, pioneer associated with the First World War Seaplane Experimental Station at Felixstowe.
Early life and career
Porte was b ...
*
C. W. A. Scott
*
Lyle Shelton
*
Thomas Sopwith
*
Louise Thaden
*
Bobbi Trout
*
Roscoe Turner
Roscoe Turner (September 29, 1895 – June 23, 1970) was a record-breaking American aviator who was a three-time winner of the Thompson Trophy air race and widely recognized by his flamboyant style and his pet, Gilmore the lion, Gilmore the L ...
*
Jules Védrines
*
Jimmy Wedell
*
Steve Wittman
*
Charles Terres Weymann
Racing airplanes
See also
*
Model aircraft#Competitions
*
Drone racing
Drone racing is a motorsport where participants operate radio-controlled aircraft (typically small quadcopter unmanned aerial vehicle, drones) equipped with onboard digital camera, digital video cameras, with the operator looking at a compa ...
References
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