"Aviation is a major tool in our business": When Richard Childress changed NASCAR travel with private jets

RCR team owner Richard Childress once explained that owning private jets for his team and drivers was not a luxury but strictly a part of his business. He discussed the difference private jets had brought in NASCAR, considering the travel times they cut down for teams.

Logistics remain a major challenge for the NASCAR teams. Every week, they move to different states for races and are practicing for those races during weekdays. This keeps them on a very strict schedule. Amid this, private jets come down as saviours as they cut down on the travel and give more time to the drivers and teams to prepare.

This was one of the reasons that Richard Childress explained in February 2011 as he drew a contrast between a luxury and a business spend; he believed that private jets were part of the latter.

"People sometimes...think of [a corporate jet] as a luxury," he said via Business Jet Traveler. "We look at our aviation department no different than we look at a piece of equipment that we have to have to run our business."

He further stated that teams have to move in entirety before the start of a race, which can get quite difficult but is made easy by these jets.

"One of the main things challenging our business is time. We have to get from place to place. They're not going to wait on you for the next race. You've gotta be there."

"Aviation is a major tool in our business," Childress added.

Per the article, RCR was one of the very first teams in NASCAR to have its own airplanes back in the 1980s.

Richard Childress Racing currently fields two full-time entries in the NASCAR Cup Series: the #3, piloted by Austin Dillon, and the #8 of Kyle Busch.

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Jesse Love set to make Cup Series debut with Richard Childress Racing at Bristol

Richard Childress Racing recently announced that its Xfinity Series driver Jesse Love will make his Cup Series debut later in April this year at Bristol Motor Speedway. He will pilot the #33 Chevrolet.

Love has been racing in the team's Xfinity division since last year. He has won two races in the series so far, including the 2025 season-opening race at the Daytona International Speedway. He has proven to be a consistent driver, with five top-10 finishes this year in the first six races. Back in 2023, he also won the ARCA Championship with Venturini Motorsports.

"Racing in the Cup Series has always been my main goal and dream. Everything that I have done up to this point in my career has been building to this moment. To make my Cup Series debut at this age is very special, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to make it with RCR," he said.

Jesse Love is in the fight for the championship this year, considering his performances. He had a similar record in the 2024 season as well, however, he only finished the season in eighth place.