National Championship Air Races touch down in Roswell for first time

The National Championship Air Races opened outside Roswell, New Mexico, for the first time in the event’s roughly 60-year history, drawing thousands of fans to five days of head-to-head airplane racing that run through Sunday at the Roswell Air Center.

Pilots will circle courses marked by vintage pylons within sight of spectators, often flying as low as 50 feet (15 meters) but not below that threshold and as close as 250 feet (76 meters) to the ground. Competitors include builders of Formula 1-style prop racers, brightly painted aerobatic biplanes and jets capable of exceeding 500 miles per hour (804 kilometers per hour). "It’s up to eight planes in the sky together at the same time racing against each other, not against a clock, and there’s just nowhere else in the world you can see it like this," said Tony Logoteta, president of the Reno Air Racing Association, which now runs the Roswell races.

Organizers moved the championship from Reno after urban growth around the Reno-Stead Airport restricted safe operating space. The Reno Air Racing Association took a year off to relocate the event and chose the Roswell Air Center for its wide open terrain, long runways and lack of nearby neighborhoods. The former Walker Air Force Base and surrounding desert offer an uninterrupted view of the course and the sky, officials said.

Event planners expect between 30,000 and 40,000 unique visitors this year; tens of thousands of tickets were sold before opening day and Roswell hotel rooms were reported sold out. New Mexico state and local officials have invested millions of dollars in airport improvements, including new grandstands that will seat up to 9,500 when completed. Cities in six states bid to host the races, which require wide open land, suitable runways, ample ramp and hangar space, security facilities and spectator amenities.

Race finals were scheduled for Sunday. Companion displays over the five-day run include military and vintage aircraft and aerobatic performances, though popular races by World War II–era fighters will not take place this year after those participants withdrew.

Safety has been a major focus since the races’ move. The event is accredited by the Federal Aviation Administration and requires pilots to complete mandatory training and testing. Organizers and local fire, rescue and law enforcement agencies coordinated planning and response. Spectator seating was arranged along straightaways and away from the hazards of course turns, Logoteta said, and the Roswell site is remote from residential development.

That emphasis on safety follows a series of fatal incidents at past championships. Investigators concluded last week that a midair collision of two vintage aircraft during the 2023 championships in Reno occurred after both pilots deviated from expected flight paths and did not see each other before impact. The National Transportation Safety Board report said one pilot made a wide turn and the other executed a tighter approach, leading to the collision. The 2023 crash raised the number of pilots or performers killed in the races to 24; the deadliest incident in the event’s history was a 2011 crash that killed 10 spectators.

Organizers noted that the Roswell location affords some inherent safety advantages because the 80-square-mile (207-square-kilometer) commercial aviation complex provides runway length and clear approaches without encroaching development. They said the changes are intended to preserve the spectacle of close-quarters, multi-plane racing while reducing risk to the public on the ground.

The Roswell area is a remote oil-production region known for clear skies and popular culture associations with purported unidentified flying object sightings. The association that runs the air races hopes the new venue will attract fans from neighboring Texas and beyond and eventually rival the attendance and economic impact the event generated in its final decade in Reno, when it drew more than 1 million visitors and produced an estimated $750 million in economic activity.

Race officials and safety regulators reiterated that while measures aim to mitigate hazards, an element of risk is inherent in any motorsport involving aircraft. Investigations into prior accidents remain part of ongoing efforts to refine procedures, training and course design as the championship seeks to continue in its new southwestern home.