National Championship Air Races Make Their Way To Historic Military Grounds in Roswell, New Mexico

And so, it ends! It turns out that it wasn’t a joke after all. Apparently, growth in the Reno, Nevada area in general, and around the Reno/Stead airfield complex specifically, mandated that another venue be found for the National Championship Air Races (NCAR). After 60 thrilling years hosting the air races, the Reno Air Race Association (RARA) is moving the acclaimed affair. NCAR will officially depart Reno, NV (RNO) on a heading of 110 degrees for 949 miles. Destination Roswell, NM (ROW). After years of alien sightings, Roswell is now the destination for some real-life encounters, this time with high-performance aircraft and some of the best damn pilots in the world. Lock up your wives, sisters, and daughters boys, the Reno Air Race Association (RARA) gaggle is coming your way. On second thought, don’t bother to lock the ladies up, it would just be a waste of time, as many of them are as proficient in piloting as their male counterparts.

As NCAR heads to Roswell a few thoughts and questions are still rattling around in everyone’s head. One of the big questions has to do with how Reno, NV plans to replace the millions of dollars in revenue generated annually from the air races. I’m told that a recent study conducted by the University of Nevada-Reno (UNR) found that the RARA event in 2023 drew over 113,000 attendees, including approximately 80,000 non-local air race devotees, and this generous lot dipped into their collective wallets and purses to the tune of $158,641,993. Clearly, the positive economic impact on northern Nevada over the last 60 years has been significant, not just in revenue generated, but more subjectively in showcasing the “Biggest Little City in The World” and it’s world class hospitality. I suppose we could expand the regional “Burning Man” wantonness into a bi-monthly celebration. But then, the scantily clad  “Burning Man” attendees probably don’t have a place to keep their money belts anyway, so likely that won’t work.

It was over a year ago that the Reno Air Race Association (RARA) announced to the aviation world that the NCAR event would be changing its venue from Reno, Nevada to a new location. A Request for Proposal (RFP) was widely broadcast at the end of 2023, with 11 cities initially responding with expressions of interest. Six of the interested cities went the final step by submitting formal responses to the RARA RFP. Those submitting formal responses were  Casper, WY, Buckeye, AZ, Wendover, UT, Roswell, NM, Pueblo, CO, and Thermal, CA. The down-select process kicked into high gear in early 2024, with Casper, WY, Roswell, NM, and Pueblo, CO being highlighted as down-selectees. Then in May 2024, (drum roll please) Roswell, NM was sprinkled with AVGAS as it passed under the checkered flag.

When it comes to aviation facilities, it’s not difficult to see the Roswell draw. It was constructed in 1941 as a pilot and bombardier training facility. The official opening took place in September of that year and the aerodrome complex changed its name from Roswell Army Flying School to Roswell Army Air Field (RAAF). Throughout WWII it handled much of the Army Air Corps multiengine (heavy) flight training. On 12 September 1944, HQ AAF directed Training Command to establish all B-29 transition schooling at RAAF. The B-29 transition training was all encompassing, and included pilots, copilots, bombardiers, and flight engineers. The initial lack of B-29 inventory was a problem, however, but by January 1945 Roswell AAF had fully transitioned to the B-29. After dropping the atomic bombs on Japan in August 1945, the 509^th Composite Group, commanded by Col. Paul Tibbets, was re-assigned to RAAF.

After WWII, it was transitioned to the USAF Strategic Air Command (SAC) and re-named Walker AFB. At one time, it was said to be the largest SAC base in the United States. Much to the chagrin of the local population, Walker AFB was slated for closure in 1967 by the Department of Defense. Today, the much-heralded base has been renamed the Roswell International Air Center (RIAC). The facility boasts 2 major concrete runways, one 13,000 feet in length and the other clocking in at 10,000 feet. In addition, there remain several auxiliary fields in proximity to the complex. The more you look at Roswell, it becomes pretty clear why it was selected.

“We’ve now got a huge airfield with a lot of flat ground and a whole lot of opportunity to do things that even in our old home (RNO) we weren’t able to achieve. So, we can now do fly-ins and there is a ton of RV parking, we can really create some neat spaces,” said Tony Logoteta, the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the Reno Air Racing Association.

With the entire selection process completed, it was time to get ready for the 2025 Roswell NCAR (September 10^th-14^th). The RARA began moving a lot of equipment to RIAC soon after the announcement was made.    One of the first steps was getting the pilot recertification school up and running so the race competitors would be able to round the starting pylon and hear the whisper of  the late great Bob Hoover in their headsets saying, “Gentlemen, you have a race.”  The design, development, and layout of the course will be happening concurrently with the establishment of the recertification school. A host of operational and administrative tasks are proceeding in parallel with these other activities.

While the loss of the NCAR marked the end of six decades of air racing at the Sky Ranch and Stead Aerodromes,  the RARA and the city of Reno have to be given some credit for keeping the “air show” portion of the event alive. The 2024 Reno Air Show (RAS) main theme was all about celebrating the 60^th anniversary of The National Championship Air Races coming to Reno. The RAS was held from October 4^th through October 6^th and included twilight shows, STOL demos, and the introduction of past NCAR legends. Kudos and a big round of applause goes to the air show planning team for assembling what was likely one of the premier air shows in the United States this year (sorry Oshkosh).

The 2024 Reno Air Show planning team managed to secure the services of the U. S. Navy Blue Angels, the Canadian Forces Snowbirds, and the USAF F-16 Viper Demo Team, along with an array of over a dozen individual demonstration aircraft.

The last time the Blue Angels visited the Reno Air Races was in 2016, and when you realize that this year’s airshow was the only time these two world-class demonstration teams were on the same program, you knew you had a do not miss event. To the credit of both demo teams, they managed to battle through some pretty gusty winds on Friday afternoon. I guess the good news was that the steady-state wind aligned very well with the active runway.

On a slightly somber note, RNO QB Hangar members have been directly or indirectly involved throughout the history of the Reno Air Races. You could usually find a Quiet Birdman or two involved in some way with the air races. The much loved RNO QB Hospitality Suite became a casualty of the RARA decision to move to ROW. However, in the spirit of “Don’t Give Up the Ship”, hangar leadership elected to host it’s RNO QB Hangar “Wing Ding” on the Saturday evening  of the air show. Local and guest QB’s partook of a razorback roast (aka pig) dinner, and to make sure it was easily digested, a beer and wine truck was strategically positioned just outside the “Wing Ding” venue.

As we look hopefully toward a repeat of the successful 2024 Reno Air Show next year, a bit of introspection is called for. The nostalgic lyrics called out in the famous Roy Clark song “Yesterday” bring a bit of a smile to my face. “Yesterday, when I was young, the taste of life was sweet as rain upon my tongue…”  Were the past 60 years interesting times as the Chinese proverb suggests? Well, to this old pilot, of course, it was! And what an amazing tapestry of pilots we knew and aircraft we watched and flew. But alas, the future is where everyone is headed. I guess it’s one of life’s paradoxes that we cannot know the future, but the past is clear as a bell. Keep the blue side up as they say, and we’ll see you next year at the 2025 RNO Airshow!