Operation Bloodhound

We were looking to improve the performance model with actual data

While low-speed testing (200mph) on the runway at Newquay airport in 2017 was all about demonstrating that we could operate the car, and to gather data on the installation and integration of the Eurojet EJ200, South Africa was all about gathering the data for the whole operation. Everything from logistics, planning and operations to how well the air brakes work, to drinking water and laundry. In fact, everything we need to understand before embarking on the Land Speed Record attempt.

Hakskeen Pan (HKP) is remote, incredibly beautiful and the finest place on the planet to go fast. However, that remoteness brings with it its own challenges. Twice a week we needed to go and collect drinking water from the nearest significant town, Upington, 260km away. We were lucky to be staying at a lodge just 60km from the track, with the morning commute regularly populated with messages passing down the convoy of ‘donkeys’, as the lead car came across a group of them, or ‘goats’, casually standing around in the middle of the road over a rise in the dawn light.

Operation HQ

We set up our workshop, a large tented structure, at the edge of the dunes, towards the centre of the track and next to some existing container cabins and a telecoms mast. That was our