Red Bull will build a wind tunnel in three years

Red Bull Racing plans to build a new wind tunnel, but according to Christian Horner the team will not feel the consequences of this project until 2027.

A few months ago we told you that Red Bull had withdrawn its application to design a wind tunnel, and at the time it was suggested that this was due to the need to choose a different location for the site, and this will require new approvals are obtained.

As a result, construction can start no earlier than 2024 and be completed only in 2026, and new, more advanced equipment can already be used during the work on the 2027 chassis. Currently, Red Bull uses an old wind tunnel in the city of Bedford – it went to the team along with all assets that belonged to Jaguar until 2004.

Although this wind tunnel has since been modernized, it was originally built during the Second World War for the development of military aircraft.

For breaches of financial regulations, Red Bull Racing was fined and the team was given limited time for aerodynamic research in 2022, but these restrictions expired last October.

“The time we had to use the wind tunnel increased slightly in October because we operated it well,” team boss Christian Horner told Speedcafe. – Now we can use it 7% more, but this is 8% less than any other team. But these are the rules that apply now.”

This means that the time allocated to Formula 1 teams for aerodynamic research depends on the position in the constructors’ championship of the previous season. Accordingly, in the case of Red Bull Racing, which won the championship, the number of hours is less than that of its rivals.

“The wind tunnel we have, which can be considered a relic of the Cold War, is not very effective, especially in cold weather,” Horner continued. – Since there are plenty of such days in Britain, we have to act very selectively. But the team is doing a great job conducting our research.

In any case, as wind tunnels will continue to be used in the future, we need to move with the times and invest in the construction of a new wind tunnel, which will begin sometime in 2024. It can probably be used to work with the 2027 chassis.

I don’t want to use a facility like that in the middle of the season; the wind tunnel is officially registered for the whole year, so we will probably be able to work in it with the 2027 car.”

The construction of the wind tunnel will coincide with the development of its own power source, which the new engine division Red Bull Powertrains (RBPT) must create by 2026. All this will of course entail enormous costs.

Horner confirmed that the team continues to receive unconditional support from Red Bull even after the death of Dietrich Mateschitz: “Thanks to the support of shareholders, including Thai, and the Mateschitz family in the person of his son, we will have more buildings in 2023 than in any other last year in the team’s history.

There is incredible support for the UK technology campus project. We have been talking about building a new, perfect wind tunnel for the past 19 years. If we talk about RBPT: in a period of three years we hired almost 500 specialists and built a new complex with our own production capacity. This demonstrates the commitment of the company’s shareholders to our team and will secure its future.”