F1 News: Haas Hit Back At Plans To Ban Wind Tunnels By 2030 – F1 Briefings

F1 aims to be carbon neutral by 2030 and part of that plan is banning wind tunnels. However, this has sparked concern within the teams. Arron Melvin, head of aerodynamics at Haas, claims it is something that the F1 “does not need to ban”.

The proposed plan is to use Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) to design the cars, rather than the wind tunnel testing. During an interview with RacingNews365, Melvin has discussed the potential move for the sport and how he believes it goes against what Formula 1 is. Hey explained:

“The regulations will have to change to allow us to be as thorough as we are now. These cars are very refined, and we get a substantial lap time from this refinement.

“There are fast race cars that have very little wind tunnel testing, but that’s not F1 so we have to keep in mind what the series wants to be. But it is certainly possible to make a safe, fast car without a wind tunnel.”

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The aerodynamics chief went on to explain that he thinks a slower “phase out” to a reduced level would be more appropriate, rather than an abrupt stop. He continued:

“I don’t believe it’s intelligent, in terms of cost effectiveness. It’s good to have regulation and encourage us to push the limit of CFD capability.

“So I’d be very receptive to regulations that change the balance. But the industry is so good at wind tunnel testing, it’s not something that we need to ban, you certainly can phase it down to a much lower investment level.

“The most effective discussions on environmental responsibility are those that are complete and inclusive, so we shouldn’t just pick on the wind tunnel, we should talk about our all of our activity as an industry and our source of power.

“It’s quite achievable to have very decarbonized power and be sustainable.”