2020 Air Race Classic Canceled

The 2020 Air Race Classic, an annual women's cross-country aviation race that was to finish at Terre Haute Regional Airport, has been canceled.

It was slated to start June 19 in Grand Forks, North Dakota and finish in Terre Haute on June 26, with activities continuing until June 28.

"This year, for only the second time since World War II, the annual women's cross-country air race will not take place," the Air Race Classic said in a Facebook post on April 6. "One of the cornerstones of the race is the emphasis the organization places on safety, for our racers and spectators and for the hundreds of volunteers who devote numerous hours to help ensure its legacy.”

The global COVID-19 pandemic prompted the decision to cancel, the organization said.

Jeff Hauser, executive director of the Terre Haute Regional Airport, Wednesday in a teleconference meeting of the airport's board of directors, said the airport is looking at options of moving the race back one or two years or not participating at all.

COVID-19 and funding

In other business, John Baer, an engineer for Woolpert Inc., told the board under the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, or “CARES Act," the Federal Aviation Administration has announced it would fully fund all 2020 projects that have pre-submitted plans, as well as fund potential new projects.

The first and largest segment -- at $500 million -- is for projects already in an airport's capital improvement program, but airports this month must submit pre-applications to show 2020 projects are ready to go.

For Terre Haute, Bauer suggests that can include an apron rehabilitation, a wildlife hazard assessment, and something Baer said was suggested by the FAA - a new Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting (ARF) vehicle.

If funding is 100% approved, Terre Haute Regional Airport would receive about $800,000, Bauer said.

The second and smaller segment of federal funding from which local airports can seek help is $100 million, and it is for non-designated projects. Those could include maintenance or operations including a potential joint-use fire station for the airport and the city of Terre Haute. However, no guidelines for this funding segment have yet been finalized by the FAA, Bauer told the board.

Board member Bernice Helman suggested Monica Newhouse-Rodriguez of of Newhouse & Associates, an airport consulting firm hired to help with airport's (formerly known as the Indiana 46/U.S. 40 Corridor committee), be included in discussions.

The board's economic development committee will address this in a Zoom conference next week, possibly on Tuesday, with the full board meeting after to vote on a plan for a submission. The board also is to vote to approve its pre-application for 2020 projects.

Other matters

In other matters, the board approved a resolution amending its 2020 employee compensation to provide a COVID-19 stay-at-home pay policy for its employees, encouraging as many employees as possible to work from home.

Wednesday marked the first meeting of the airport board via teleconference due to a statewide stay-at-home order.

Reporter Howard Greninger can be reached 812-231-4204 or [email protected]. Follow on Twitter@TribStarHoward.

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