IGI to handle 600 tonnes of F1 cargo

New Delhi: With India set to host its first Formula 1Grand Prix motor race and the track at Greater Noida getting spruced up for the event, scheduled for 30 October, hectic preparations are simultaneously on at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) to ensure that the massive amounts of F1 cargo that participating teams and event managers require for a successful conclusion of the event is offloaded, and post –event, on loaded for onward journey.

Expected to arrive between 18-20 October the event cargo is expected to be approximately 600 tonnes of palletised cargo. A total of 40 pallets (also known as racks) per aircraft would arrive at the international cargo, airport officials said.

The F1 cargo is strictly race specific.

Accompanying the hi-tech Formula 1 cars, would be the safety and medical cars, other equipment like engines, tools, electronic equipment and communication devices.

''We are expecting seven freighter aircraft (747-400F) that would carry the race-specific cargo, without which the event cannot take place. Apart from this, there is some cargo that is also coming on the regular scheduled flights,'' a spokesperson for the Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) said.

All cargo is expected to come in by 20 October with airport authorities expecting at least two dedicated F1 freighters arriving at the airport on a daily basis.