Addio, Jumbolino: After Monza, Formula 1 retires its last BAe 146-100

Ranked among the best-known VIP aircraft in Europe, the British jet BAe-146-100 (registration G-OFOM), owned by F1 Management and used by the organizers throughout the old continent, made its last flight for the motorsport group on Friday, September 16.

Ads

After taking off from Milan with twenty members of the participating stewards from last week’s Monza GP, the aircraft flew to London (Biggin Hill) and then on to Cranfield, also in the UK, where it is to be preserved. A few weeks ago, the Formula 1 logo had already been removed from the aircraft.

The final flight to Formula 1 and to storage were recorded by the flight tracking platform Radarbox. From now on, the F1 organizing group will have to use chartered flights to get around.

According to our partner Aeroin, the BAe 146 100-series aircraft, distinguished by the registration G-OFOM, was the last to enter service of the 33 produced by British Aerospace. It began operations on February 27, 1990 and is retiring after more than 32 years.

Ads

The regional aircraft, also known as the «Jumbolino» (little Jumbo) for its small size and having four engines, like the Boeing 747, is powered by Honeywell ALF 502R-5 turbofan engines with a thrust of 3,171 kg, which guarantee a range of just over 2,000 km. It has some peculiarities, such as the presence of an aerodynamic opening brake located in the tail cone in the absence of the engines’ thrust reversing devices.

Over the past 22 years, the F1 Management fleet has had three aircraft of this model (in different periods), which have transported thousands of employees to events all over Europe.