Now this is quite exciting news. Jonathan Palmer has confirmed the freehold purchase of Laon-Couvron aerodrome in France, just north of Reims. The plan is to create another facility from it in the mould of Bedford Autodrome, but bigger and better. Or so it sounds.
The airfield is enormous. Originally a French Air Force base, it was used by the USAF and French army too until closing in 2012; at 1,263 acres in total with two runways - one of them 3km long - it's the perfect place to build what Palmer has called has called "a mecca for drivers of supercars and other high-performance vehicles."
Palmer's Motorsport Vision - the company who runs Snetterton, Cadwell Park, Brands Hatch and Oulton Park - will expand, with MSV France building the Laon facility. A variety of circuit formats will be available along with a drag strip, rally stages, 4x4 courses, an oval and plenty more.
While race meetings are planned, the focus for Laon will be track days, manufacturer events and PalmerSport days. It's therefore being designed with road cars in mind: "Laon Autodrome will be the perfect place with a very long straight to enable top speeds to be achieved, the exhilaration of fast sweeping corners to be enjoyed, but with no tight hairpins or chicanes" says Palmer, the logic being that removing those places far less strain on the brakes and tyres of road cars. Perhaps not the place to take your Caterham then...
Construction is set to begin in 2017 with opening scheduled for April 2018. We'll keep you updated on the Laon Autodrome as the project develops. One more to add to your track day hit list hopefully!
M4 vs. RC F images by Anthony Fraser, Megane 275 vs. Leon Cupra shots by Tom Begley and Jonathan Palmer photo from LAT
[Source: Autocar]
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