F1 | Aston Martin behind the scenes: the AMR26 arrives in Barcelona on an Antonov
The Aston Martin AMR26 quickly captured the attention of fans and insiders alike. The three laps completed on Wednesday at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya were enough to immortalize it in the first photos, immediately scrutinized by the most attentive observers. While the verdicts of rival engineers and, of course, the track awaited, there was a story that kept the Montmelò paddock buzzing Wednesday afternoon. A small, amusing behind-the-scenes episode that deserves to be told.
At Aston Martin’s Silverstone headquarters, the engineers worked overtime, even overnight, to ensure the car arrived in time for Barcelona and could complete at least a day of testing.
Early Wednesday morning, the green light was given at Silverstone, and the team’s logistics crew had to quickly organize transport between the nearest international airport, Birmingham, and the Spanish airport of Girona, which is the most convenient for reaching the circuit swiftly.
But there was a significant challenge: finding an aircraft capable of carrying the large crate containing the new car. The first available slot was provided by Cavok Air, a Ukrainian cargo company. The plane assigned? A 1972 Antonov An-12BP. Yes, exactly: a propeller-driven, four-engine plane built more than fifty years ago.
The veteran of the skies loaded Newey’s “jewel” and completed the mission without any issues. In the paddock, of course, there were jokes: a museum piece tasked with transporting one of the most advanced projects in current Formula 1. “But was Newey aware of this?” quipped some of the paddock staff.
In the end, however, it wasn’t the fifty-four-year-old Antonov that caused any delays in Aston Martin’s schedule. The flight from the West Midlands to Catalonia took less than three hours, and enthusiasts at the destination quickly captured and posted photos of the arrival on social media. The vintage technology did its job.
The arrival of the AMR26 via a half-century-old Antonov serves as a perfect metaphor for the frantic, high-stakes nature of Formula 1’s 2026 transition, where even the most advanced engineering projects rely on grit and creative logistics. While the vintage cargo plane stole the spotlight for an afternoon, the focus now shifts back to the performance of Adrian Newey’s latest creation on the tarmac. This successful delivery ensures that despite the production delays at Silverstone, the team can finally begin the crucial work of data collection before heading to Bahrain. Whether transported by modern jet or a 1972 relic, the AMR26’s journey has only just begun, and its true value will be measured not by how it arrived, but by the lap times it produces in this new era.
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