Red Bull Air Race

Yesterday, I went to see the finals of the Red Bull Air Race here in Perth.  This was my first time watching the event, since I was over seas at the times it was held the previous two years.

The weather was good, and gave me a good opportunity to play with my camera a bit.  Sometimes you can miss out on the action by trying to take photos, but in this case the camera made it a lot easier to see the planes from the shore.

As the overall winner was decided by points scored over the full series, it wasn’t necessary for the series winner to win the Perth race.  This turned out to be the case, with Hans Arch coming third but winning the series.

Hannes Arch passing through one of the gates in front of the WACA
Hannes Arch passing through one of the gates in front of the WACA

The Perth final ended up being between two English pilots: Nigel Lamb and Paul Bonhomme, with Bonhomme winning the race.

Paul Bonhomme passing through the finishing pylons
Paul Bonhomme passing through the finishing gate

After the race, there was a display by the RAAF Roulettes formation flying team, and a fly over by an F/A-18 Hornet.

F/A-18 Hornet
F/A-18 Hornet

Overall, it was a pretty good day.  I don’t know if I’d have been up for watching the entire two days worth, but the finals were entertaining.  Hopefully I’ll be around for next year’s race.