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The Outback Air Race is now confirmed to return on 29 August 2022 after being postponed this year due to COVID.
Organisers also announced The Lottery Office will spend $65,000 to sponsor the event, which sees 100 competitors fly a total of 3,800 kilometres across three different states. The 13-day event will culminate in a finale at Coffs Harbour on 11 September 2022.
Other locations include Darwin to Cooinda, Adels Grove, Karumba, Undara, Shute Harbour, Gladstone, Roma and Goondiwindi.
The event raises funds for the Royal Flying Doctor Service and has garnered more than $3.1 million in donations since its foundation in 1996.
Anyone who registered for the cancelled 2021 race was given the chance to withdraw and receive a full refund, or instead roll their entry over to next year’s event.
Speaking of the postponement, race manager Stuart Payne said, “We are still seeing ongoing imposition of lockdowns and other restrictions in response to COVID related risks.
“For an event such as ours, held in remote areas with accommodation booked in specific places for only specific dates, any delays associated with travel restrictions would result in the need to cancel the event, and substantial inconvenience and unbudgeted costs for participants and the event.
“Our committee has decided that our ability to manage these risks in the current environment is just too compromised to allow us to responsibly continue per our original schedule.”
Following the launch of the 2021 Outback Air Race, organisers announced that within two weeks of opening registration, the race was already fully subscribed. Registrations for the 2021 event saw teams that spanned across WA, ACT, NSW, Queensland and Victoria.
Each year, the Royal Flying Doctor Service helps over 370,000 patients, conducts 18,000 remote clinics and flies over 27 million kilometres per year. The RFDS has been operating for more than 92 years.
