Trondheim airport Værnes was a hive of activity today as 19 World RX Supercars touched down in Norway for the upcoming RX race at Hell after being airfreighted on a chartered Boeing 747-400 from Montreal, Canada. The landing, which was co-ordinated by logistics specialists GAC, marked the first time that Supercars competing in the FIA World Rallycross Championship presented by Monster Energy had been transported by aeroplane.
Norwegian World RX drivers Petter Solberg and Andreas Bakkerud – who are currently first and second in the Championship’s overall drivers’ standings – both attended the landmark occasion as well as the Mayor of Stjørdal, Ivar Vigdenes; the Managing Director of GAC Pindar Logistics, Mike Millar; members of IMG World RX Management and organisers from Hell RX.
The aeroplane departed Montreal on the evening of Thursday 13 August and arrived in Norway at midday today [Friday 14 August]. Media were able to watch the landmark landing via a Helitrans helicopter and were treated to a car display from Solberg. This was followed by a special press conference and drinks reception for media and VIP guests at the nearby Scandic Hotel.
Mike Millar, Managing Director of GAC Pindar Logistics, explained: “It’s been very exciting to work with World RX as the Championship made its transition away from sea-freight to air-freight. We carried 19 Supercars plus spares on the flight, transporting nine cars on the lower deck and the remaining balance with cargo on the main deck. GAC is well versed in having to deal with specialist and time sensitive cargo on chartered planes and I am delighted that the first air-freight with World RX into Trondheim was a success.”
Mayor of Stjørdal, Ivar Vigdenes, added: “This has been an extraordinary day and having our national hero Petter [Solberg] join us for this landmark occasion has made it even more special. It’s fantastic for local business to have a World Championship come to our region and we look forward to welcoming the rest of the World RX teams when they attend the Norwegian race in Hell next weekend. I would like to see Stjørdal host a variety of other big events and today’s activities have helped prove that our region is very capable of doing so.”
Martin Anayi, Managing Director for World RX at IMG, concluded: “World RX has gone from strength to strength over the past 18 months and our first air-freight is another milestone moment in the Championship’s continued development. Air-freight is something we didn’t think was feasible in such a short space of time but everything went smoothly thanks to GAC’s unrivalled contacts in worldwide shipping and logistics. When we sent our cars by sea-freight from Canada in 2014, the whole process took over a week but this year our cars were transported across the Atlantic in less than 12 hours. It’s also very fitting that our first air-freight has been to Norway; a country which has a rich heritage in rallycross and is also home to our inaugural World RX Champion.”
The NAF World RX of Norway – round eight of the FIA World Rallycross Championship – will take place in Hell next weekend (21-23 August).