Explained: What is a flyaway race in Formula 1?

If you tuned into the Singapore and Japanese Grands Prix, you may well have heard the team “flyaway race” mentioned – but if you’re new to the sport, you might not know what this means, so we’re here to help.

Flyaway races refer to Grands Prix in the F1 calendar that are outside the sport’s traditional European heartland.

All 10 Formula 1 teams have their main headquarters in Europe – seven in the United Kingdom, two in Italy and one in Switzerland.

For the nine events that take place within Europe, every team's equipment and motorhomes will travel by road to each and every race weekend.

Where this differs for “flyaway races" is, as the name suggests, everything considered race-critical, such as car components, will go by air to all of the far-flung destinations that make up the rest of the calendar.

Similarly, five sets of equipment classified as non-critical for race performance will be loaded into cargo crates at the start of the season and shipped to events taking place several months down the line.

But why was this mentioned frequently of late? Well, that will be because Singapore and Japan formed the first flyaways since Canada, kickstarting a run of eight long-haul trips to conclude the season.

Here’s how the flyaways break down from now until Abu Dhabi…

Aside from the seasons during the pandemic, Singapore has become our traditional first stop after the European leg.

The race around Marina Bay presents an interesting challenge for all the teams as everyone works on European time zones owing to it being a night race, so breakfast at 2pm is perfectly normal.

As the race was heating up on track, packdown was already underway as we looked to get everything set to board the seven-hour flight to Suzuka the very next day.

With the Japanese Grand Prix shifting to April in 2024, this will be the last time we make this hop across the South China Sea.

F1’s return to Qatar will be the only race between now and the end of the season not to form part of a double (or triple) header.

We’ve only raced once before at the Lusail International Circuit, found to the north of Doha, but this season's event marks the first of a 10-year deal.

This venue will also host our next Sprint weekend.

This is the second triple-header of the season, though it should be the first to see all three races take place after the Imola-Monaco-Barcelona leg saw the Emilia Romagna GP postponed due to devastating flooding.

It’s a mammoth undertaking for everyone in the team, but being a well-oiled machine, we expect everyone will take it in their stride.

Austin and São Paulo also host the final two Sprint events of the season, meaning there are plenty of points up for grabs during this trifecta.

Then it’s back to Grove once again to prepare for one last set of races.

The final leg of the season begins at one of the most highly-anticipated F1 events of modern times as the pinnacle of motorsport returns to Las Vegas.

We’ll be racing down the strip on a Saturday night, giving us all a little extra time before we take flight for the other side of the world as the finale in Abu Dhabi awaits.