The tally, conducted by the University of Nevada at Reno’s Center for Regional Study, estimated that the NCAR race pumped $158,641,993 into the local economy. With over 80,000 nonlocal attendees at the event, the majority coming from ZIP codes outside of Washoe County, the numbers show the positive impact of the races on the overall Reno economy, which has reaped the benefit for the past 60 years.

“Strengthening the community where we host the air races is an important part of our mission, and we are thankful that the amazing support from our fans this past year spilled over into such a wonderful economic benefit for the Reno community,” said Tony Logoteta, chief operating officer of the Reno Air Racing Association (RARA).

The Center for Regional Studies, which conducts the research and analysis for the Reno area, determined that most folks leading up to and visiting the area during race days were primarily making the journey to attend the races as a destination event. When you start counting the direct and indirect spending and expenditures linked to lodging, travel, entertainment, shopping, gambling, food, dining, and the like, it’s easy to see how those numbers were attained.

“While the final flag of the National Championship Air Races in Reno was waved, we are honored to have had an incredible impact on the community,” said Fred Telling, CEO of RARA. “Reno was RARA’s first home, and as the town grew, so did we. Together, we made Reno the pinnacle of air racing, and that would not have been possible without our community, volunteers, local businesses, and nonprofits. We are thankful for all who have supported us in the area and hope you have felt our support as well.”

As reported earlier by Plane & Pilot, RARA announced on May 23 that Roswell, New Mexico, will be the new home of the National Championship Air Races starting in 2025. And for those impatient who want an aviation excuse to visit Reno this year, you won’t be disappointed.

RARA promises that the Reno Air Show, taking place Friday, October 4 through Sunday, October 6, will be an event like no other, including a first-ever evening show and performances by the incomparable U.S. Navy Blue Angels and the Canadian Forces Snowbirds. The USAF F-16 Viper Demonstration Team also will put the F-16 through its paces.

Tickets for the Reno Air Show are available now.

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• READ MORE: Blockbuster Reno News: 2023 Will Be the Last Races There

The Reno Air Racing Association (RARA) opted for a venue change from Reno to Roswell after a lengthy selection process. Fred Telling, CEO and chairman of the board for the RARA said, “We’re thrilled to bring our honored tradition of racing to Roswell and are confident that they have both the enthusiasm and resources to expand the future of our races for many generations to come.” 

You will witness not just fast planes in the air but static displays and military demonstrations, which in the past have included several Air Force tactical demonstrations and various military aircraft in many stages of flight.  

• READ MORE: Heats Level Up as Unlimiteds Begin at ‘Last Reno’ Air Races

According to RARA, a fresh racecourse design and thrilling new features that fully exploit the unique Roswell location are in the pipeline. The Roswell Air Center Airport (KROW) is the new home for the air races, offering a plethora of options and experiences for attendees to savor. These include a trip to the Walker Aviation Museum, a testament to the area’s military history, and short jaunts to Mescalero Sand Dunes and the Spring River Park & Zoo, a haven for a diverse range of animals that will eagerly welcome aviators and spectators from across the globe.

Over 1,000 volunteers are hosting this event. It takes a concerted effort to put on the races with over 100 pilots and airplanes taking part, including seven classes of aircraft divided by design, performance, flight characteristics, and speed. Spectators will watch them race over an ovoid course with seven to 10 pylons throughout, with some airplane classes reaching speeds of more than 500 mph. This is not your daddy’s J3 Cub.

60 years ago, the National Championship Air Races flew into the aviation scene when Bill Stead organized an air race near Reno. The tradition continues next year with an event that, over the past 10 years, has attracted more than 1 million spectators and generated more than $750 million for the region’s economy.

This is truly an international affair that will now blend the Roswell desert landscape with the mystique out of this world reputation that is purely Roswell and alien to no one. Whether you are part of the crew or a spectator who wants to see firsthand the pure adrenaline and excitement of the world’s fastest motorsport, your ticket to the National Championship Air Races awaits you. 

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The final National Air Races at Reno, Nevada are on hold following a two-airplane accident.

Reno Air Racing Association released a statement (see below) saying the pilots of the two aircraft involved are both deceased.

Identification of pilots has been held while the race organization contacts the next of kin. However, witness reports say that the two aircraft came together while recovering following the race.

The aircraft met such that the tail of one aircraft was severed followed by both aircraft falling to the ground at steep angles. There are no reports of anyone on the ground being involved; one aircraft appears to have crashed on open airport property, the other off airport also in open land between two sets of housing.

Whether the Unlimited and Sport Gold races will be run or concluded on the basis of previous heat races remains to be determined.

Statement regarding incident during final day of National Championship Air Races

Reno, Nev. – It is with great sorrow that the Reno Air Racing Association (RARA) announces that around 2:15 p.m. this afternoon, at the conclusion of the T-6 Gold race, upon landing, two planes collided and it has been confirmed that both pilots are deceased. The RARA Board of Directors and the T-6 class president are working to notify next of kin and ensure families have all of our support. There were no civilian injuries and we’re in the process of confirming additional details around the incident. Additional information will be released as soon as it is available. All racing operations are currently suspended.

Safety is the foremost concern of RARA and we work year round to host the safest event possible. As we always do, we are cooperating with the National Transportation Safety Board, the FAA and all local authorities to identify the cause of the accident and ensure that all of our pilots, spectators and volunteers have the necessary support during this time.

Editor’s Note: This is a developing story. 

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Dreadnought, the flagship of the Sanders race team, is a fixture at the Reno Air Races. Since the heavily modified Sea Fury’s first race in 1983, it has been a constant menace to the souped-up racers who gathered each September at Stead Field (KRTS) to race for the Sunday Unlimited Gold. In the words of Matt Russell, longtime race enthusiast, “Dreadnought kept everyone honest. Without ‘The Buick’ in the field, there was considerably less pressure to push the racers to the limit. That ship kept everyone motivated.” 

Chatter between fans and Dreadnought crew in the pits at Stead makes it clear that after the Mayday call during qualifying this year, Dreadnought’s engine is toast. “You can push on the prop if you want, but it won’t turn,” one mechanic told a fan. After landing, the crew pulled the oil screens and found slivers of metal likely indicating the master rod bearing failed. The damage was such that the crew didn’t even bother opening the cowlings. Dreadnought was down for the remainder of the race. While fans hoped desperately for a miracle—a Pratt & Whitney R-4360 race engine materializing was beyond the pale of the miracles one might encounter on the ramp at Reno. 

This race engine has been on Dreadnought for 15 years; the crankshaft was installed in the prior engine that ran 13 years before that. Needless to say, 28 years of life on a crankshaft in a racer is remarkable—but it was apparent Dreadnought’s caretakers are concerned the failed master rod bearing could have caused irreparable harm to the beating heart of the beloved racer. 

In a radial engine, the master rod is a connecting rod from the crankshaft to a piston, and the connecting rods to all the other cylinders bolt to the master rod. The crew was quick to point out that had the master rod actually failed, the damage would have been absolutely catastrophic. “There would have been cylinders all over the race course,” a mechanic said in conversation with a fan.

Crew members said Dreadnought will remain on display through the remainder of the event and will be trucked home for repairs after the Sunday Race. The Sanders team has a trailer set up for Sea Fury racers. They’ll pull the wings, mount Dreadnought on the trailer in a pretty aggressive bank angle to meet roadway restrictions, and it’ll head home a bit more humbly than it arrived.

“You’ve not seen the last of this bird, not by a long shot,” fans were told. Wherever the next iteration of unlimited air racing happens to come along, we’re sure the distinctive gray racer will rejoin the ranks and push the field to race all the way to the finish line on Sunday.

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While essentially accurate, this description fails in my opinion because it makes the event sound regimented, predictable, and perhaps even a bit boring, which it is not.

An analogy that works better, especially for nonaviation folks, is an old-fashioned soap opera with a generous dash of the action adventure genre. A cast of characters including pilots, mechanics, officials, sponsors, and spouses mixes with an unbelievable collection of meticulously cultivated horsepower. The result is a unique chorus of engines, power tools, and raised voices.

• READ MORE: Reno Air Races Reveal Final List of Participating Pilots, Aircraft

Workers open hatches and crawl deep inside fuselages to work on hydraulic and pneumatic systems. Their voices echo as they shout for tools. Colleagues run back and forth between the airplane and support trailer, searching for this wrench or that screwdriver. A spool of safety wire occasionally gets loose and rolls across the ramp.  

One thing that makes the Reno races special is that the machines rarely manage to overshadow the people, though they try. Earlier this week, a Hawker Sea Fury named Dreadnought, a big, beautiful Unlimited racer that has competed here for decades, suffered an engine failure during a qualifying run at well over 400 mph (I have never heard “knots” mentioned in reference to Reno—a nod to its motorsports history).

• READ MORE: Regional Growth Forces Reno Air Races To Look for New Home

Talk about drama. Pilot Joel Swager raised the nose, quickly trading airspeed for altitude as Dreadnought’s huge Pratt & Whitney 4360 radial uttered awful, explosive sounds before going silent. Pilots who race at Reno train for this type of emergency, but a deadstick landing in any World War II-era fighter that has been modified for racing is a difficult endeavor. Swager was cool, making the landing look easy, or at least routine. A lot of video sharing went on after the incident.

It is unclear whether the Sea Fury can be made airworthy again in time to return to the competition. There have been cases of last-minute repairs and overnight engine overhauls performed on the tarmac at Reno/Stead Airport (KRTS), but the word in the pits Wednesday was that Dreadnought was out of the event.

• READ MORE: Pilot Killed During Reno Air Races Engine Test

A lot of people will miss that aircraft because they are accustomed to its presence as a reliable strong runner. This year many saw Dreadnought as perhaps the only serious challenger to the Bardahl Special, a P-51 Mustang owned and flown by late racing legend Chuck Lyford. Lyford and the Bardahl airplane were fixtures for many years after the Reno races got going in the mid-1960s, and the aircraft returned last year after a long absence. Following major upgrades during the past year, and with Reno whiz Steven Hinton at the controls, it is favored to win Sunday’s Gold Race.

Anything can happen in racing, though, and there are several Unlimited heats to come before the final. So much can happen between now and Sunday. And the Unlimiteds are but one theme in the broad Reno saga. The other classes, from Formula One to Jets, will also see aircraft tweaked, revised, and rebuilt, often by swarms of volunteer technicians who will put them back together and button up the access panels just in time to taxi for the next race.

As for the Unlimiteds, their heat races begin Thursday afternoon.

This article originally appeared on FLYINGmag.com. Ongoing coverage from FLYING Media Group sites during the Reno Air Races will continue this weekend.

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