Halo Device

Lore & Background

The first tests of the halo were carried out in 2016 and in July 2017. Since the 2018 season, the FIA has made the halo mandatory on every vehicle in Formula 1, Formula 2, Formula 3, Formula 4, Formula Regional, and Formula E as a safety measure. Other open-wheel racing series also utilize the halo, such as the IndyCar Series, Indy NXT, Super Formula, Super Formula Lights, Euroformula Open and Australian S5000. The IndyCar halo is used as a structural frame for the aeroscreen. In August 2017, the Dallara F2 2018 was presented and was the first to install the halo system. The SRT05e Formula E car presented in January 2018 had a halo. In November 2018, the 2019 FIA Formula 3 car, which was unveiled in Abu Dhabi, installed the halo as well. Beginning in 2021, the Indy Lights' IL-15 began using the halo.

Reader's Guide

The device consists of a bar that surrounds the driver's head and is connected by three points to the vehicle frame. The halo is made of titanium and weighed around 7 kg in the version presented in 2016, then rose to 9 kg in 2017. In FIA series the halo system is not developed by the teams, but is manufactured by three approved external manufacturers chosen by the FIA and has the same specification for all vehicles. In a simulation performed by the FIA, using data from 40 incidents, use of the system provided a 17% increase in the survival rate of the driver.

Did You Know?

• A single halo can cost between €13,000 and €24,000.
• At the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix, Romain Grosjean credited the halo with saving his life after a crash into the barriers.