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Air Race Classic registration opens

Registration opened Jan. 2 for the forty-third annual Air Race Classic. The women's cross-country air race kicks off on June 18 in Jackson, Tennessee, and ends on June 21 in Welland, Ontario, Canada.

Teams from across the country compete in the Air Race Classic every year. A team from Indiana State University, pictured here, competed in 2017. Photo by David Tulis.

The starting airport is McKeller-Sipes Regional Airport in Jackson, Tennessee. The terminus is Niagara Central Dorothy Rungeling Airport in Welland, Ontario. Intermediate stops include LaGrange-Callaway Airport in LaGrange, Georgia; Hattiesburg Bobby L. Chain Municipal Airport in Hattiesburg, Mississippi; Saline County Regional Airport in Bryant, Arkansas; Lee’s Summit Municipal Airport in Lee’s Summit, Missouri; Fairmont Municipal Airport in Fairmont, Minnesota; Wausau Downtown Airport in Wausau, Wisconsin; and Chippewa County International Airport in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.

The four-day event is flown in daytime VFR conditions in stock aircraft. This year’s course stretches 2,538 statute miles. Routes vary each year and average 2,400 statute miles.

Up to 60 teams of two or three pilots will have four days to complete the course in normally aspirated piston-powered airplanes, flown under day VFR conditions.

To promote a level playing field, each airplane receives a unique handicap and teams race against their own best time. Pilots use strategies to gain advantages from better weather or more favorable winds to beat their handicap by the greatest margin. Prices include medallions, trophies, and cash awards.

For more information or to enter, see the website. Registration closes March 31. Volunteers are needed at all race stops.

Jill W. Tallman
Jill W. Tallman
AOPA Technical Editor
AOPA Technical Editor Jill W. Tallman is an instrument-rated private pilot who is part-owner of a Cessna 182Q.
Topics: People, Travel, Canada

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