New rescue system gets green light

Having got the necessary clearances from organisers and insurers, should a car be stranded on certain sections of the circuit in qualifying tomorrow or the races on Sunday, a special helicopter will be able to lift the car out of the way.

The system will not be available to the entire Dubai Autodrome, to avoid grandstands, however it will be able to be used from Turns Two through to Turn 10.

An A1 GP spokesperson told autosport.com: "The system trial on Thursday went superbly. It is much quicker than marshal pushing a wrecked car out of the way, and much safer, because only one marshal is needed to attach the tow rope to the car."

The helicopter remains in the air throughout the race, and can be called upon by the race director to any part of the circuit within seconds to attached the nylon tow rope. The 1,000bhp machine was freighted to Dubai to "demonstrate its superiority over the worldwide standard flatbed truck".

Trial helicopter pilot Samuel Summermatter, who is trained to carry out heavy lifts with the machines, said: "It was crazy that the cars, their engines and their technology become ever more advanced but the way they are cleared off the track has failed to change in 30 years. So I looked for a series that might be open to new ideas, which is where A1 Grand Prix came in and that's why I'm here in Dubai."

The series will evaluate the helicopter's effectiveness after this weekend, to determine whether the 'pilot' scheme was a success.