Vowles: Williams 'Flying the Plane While Rebuilding It' in 2026

James Vowles has admitted Williams is enduring a tough 2026 season, describing the situation as "flying the plane while rebuilding it". The admission comes after the FW47 was found to be overweight and delayed in its development.

Williams started the season on the back foot. The FW47 missed the Barcelona shakedown and emerged from pre-season testing far from ideal. Vowles had previously warned that shedding weight couldn't be done overnight due to the cost cap. The process will be phased over several rounds, with the next major upgrade scheduled for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in September.

In a lengthy interview, Vowles stressed that a three-week delay in the production schedule was crucial. "We have to prove to ourselves that we can do the engineering to the right level of quality, and build a car to that level in the season. It's effectively like flying the plane and rebuilding it at the same time," he told media, including RacingNews365.

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Vowles, who took over the team in 2023, admitted that cultural change doesn't happen overnight. He said it takes 24 months or even three years to attract the best people to Grove. "We couldn't attract the best in class three years ago. People need to see progress, and changing fundamental ways of working isn't something you do instantly," he stressed.

Most notably, Vowles acknowledged the problems were worse than he predicted. "I thought we'd produce a car slightly overweight but roughly on time. That's not what we achieved. We underachieved because we had some data and didn't even trust it. The first time that data got flagged was far too late to make corrections," he explained.

The impact is clear in the standings, with Williams still near the bottom. But Vowles remains optimistic that the foundations being laid will pay off, even if patience is required. "We have to prove we've changed from where we were three years ago. It's on us to fix," he concluded.