Concorde: Eternal Beauty

World's only supersonic passenger jet lives on in our dreams, years after its formal retirement

BY SAMIDHA SATAPATHY
April 17, 2006

Above the globe at 60,000 feet, at a cruise speed of Mach 2.02, when the view outside shows the curvature of the Earth itself, when it takes off in the night and overtakes the Sun -- and then, if you are lucky enough, you stand in the cockpit and watch the Sun rise in the west, you know you can only be on one plane: the Concorde.

The Concorde may have been grounded in 2003, but it is still UK's darling. The world's first and only supersonic passenger plane proved it was the indisputable goddess of aerodynamics, when it won a nationwide vote on the public's favourite example of outstanding design since 1900, at the Great British Design Quest hosted by BBC2's Culture Show and the Design Museum.

CONCORDE'S DISTINGUISHED GUESTS
British Queen	David Beckham	Pope John Paul II
Phil Collins	Margaret Thatcher	Tony Blair

The results were announced on board a preserved Concorde at the Museum of Flight, Edinburgh, in the presence of some Concorde stars, including Barbara Harmer, Concorde's first woman pilot, Christopher Orlebar, the man who flew everybody's dream plane more than a thousand times (and also authored The Concorde Story) and Tony Benn, who had championed Concorde's cause as technology Minister in Harold Wilson's government.

CONCORDE FACTS

The 204ft plane stretches 6-10 inches mid-flight due to heating of the airframe ------------------------------------------- Four engines - specially designed Rolls-Royce/ Snecma Olympus 593s - give more than 38,000lbs of thrust each, with 'reheat'. Engines have reheat (afterburners) and variable inlet ramps. ------------------------------------------- Mach 2.04 'sweet spot' for optimum fuel consumption (supersonic drag minimum, whilst jet engines are more efficient at high speed) ------------------------------------------- Takes off at 220 knots (250mph) (compared with 165 knots for most subsonic aircraft). Cruising speed at around 1350mph - more than twice the speed of sound - and at an altitude of up to 60,000 ft (over 11 miles high). ------------------------------------------- High-pressure hydraulic system of 28 MPa (4,000 lbf/in²) for lighter hydraulic systems components. ------------------------------------------- The wingspan is smaller than that of normal aircraft at 83ft 8ins, flies in totally a different way using "Vortex Lift" to achieve her exceptional performance, Double-delta shaped wings. ------------------------------------------- Height: 37ft 1 inch. The characteristic droop nose is lowered to improve pilots' visibility for take-off and landing.

Reactions to Concorde's victory were high-spirited, and predictably dominated by the overwhelming adulation the plane never fails to conjure. Mr Benn expressed his delight at Concorde's victory, saying, "Whenever a Concorde flies, people look at it, and say it's very graceful, it's very beautiful, it is a symbol of peace and international understanding. It wasn't the most commercial vehicle to start with, but the design and beauty and skill is something that you just have to honour, and I do."

Supersonic airline research first began in 1956, with the UK, France, the Americans and the Soviets all interested in developing supersonic transport. Within ten years, the designs were ready, but costs were so great that on 29th November 1962, the British and French governments signed an agreement to cover joint design, development and manufacture of the dream planes.

Five years later, in 1967, the first prototype was rolled out at Toulouse. Although the first Concorde 001 flight from Toulouse to New York City took off on 2nd March 1969, its first supersonic flight was later that year on the 1st of October. By the 1970s, there were orders for nearly 70 aircraft, but a combination of factors including the 1970s oil crisis, acute financial difficulties of the partner airlines, a spectacular crash of the competing Soviet Tupolev Tu-144, and environmental issues such as sonic boom noise and pollution, caused a flood of cancellations.

Finally, the only buyers were Air France and British Airways. A key milestone was reached on 4th November 1970 when the Concorde 001 exceeded Mach 2 for the first time. At an altitude of 36,000 feet and 75 miles from Toulouse it held Mach 1.05 for 9 minutes. By 1972, twenty Concordes had been built, and fourteen made available for sale. Later that year, British Airways ordered five Concordes, Air France ordered four. Eventually British Airways purchased the two unsold UK built aircraft, and Air France acquired the three unsold French built crafts.

On 17th June 1974, Concorde crossed the Atlantic twice in a single day. 8th November 1986 saw the first around the world flight by British Airways Concorde covering 28.238 miles in 29 hours 59 minutes. 1989 saw the first of three serious rudder failures that would lead to replacements on seven British Airways aircraft in 1992.

CONCORDE TRIVIA

In trans-Atlantic flight, Concorde travelled more than twice as fast as other aircraft, and other aircraft frequently appeared to be flying backwards. ------------------------------------------- Flew fast enough that the weight of everyone onboard was temporarily reduced by about 1% when flying east ------------------------------------------- Concorde's oldest passenger was 105-year-old Eva Woodman, from Bristol ------------------------------------------- Passengers are afforded luxury treatment while onboard the plane, dining on foie gras, caviar and other gourmet treats and drinking fine wines and champagnes. ------------------------------------------- The 'e' on the end of the Franco-English Concorde was added by the then technology minister Tony Benn, who said it stood "for entente cordiale, for excellence". ------------------------------------------- Ticket cost per mile was cheaper than the London Underground Waterloo/City Line (£16.55 per mile) ------------------------------------------- The British Airways offer of Concorde return tickets for £2002, to celebrate the New Year 2002, sell out in 3 minutes ------------------------------------------- Hollywood loved it - features in seven films (The Concorde: Airport '79, The Concorde Affair, Doctor Who, Coming to America, Snatch, The Bonfire of the Vanities, The Parent Trap 1998)

In 1993, the Concorde G-BOAF became the first of seven aircraft to have a £1m internal and external refurbishment. On 3rd December 1993, Concorde took part in the 'fastest show on earth' when Concorde flew around the Bay of Biscay with the Bee Gees for Children In Need. On 7th February 1996, British Airways Concorde Captain Leslie Scott set a world record by covering the New York to London record in 2 hours 52 minutes 59 seconds. As if that wasn't glory enough, on 11 August 1999, two British Airways Concordes flew in supersonic formation to chase the total eclipse of the sun.

And then came the crash, literally: on 25th July 2000, Air France Concorde F-BTSC crashed in Paris, due to engine failure after a tyre burst, with the loss of 109 people onboard and four on the ground. It was the beginning of the end for Concorde. Air France operated four aircraft following the accident, two had been retired, and one was lost in the accident.

British Airways operated 5 aircraft after the accident, with 2 unmodified aircraft stored at London Heathrow. Three years later, on 10th April 2003, British Airways and Air France made a simultaneous announcement that Concorde would make its last flight scheduled passenger flight at the end of October ending nearly 30 years of supersonic travel.

Reasons cited for withdrawal from service included a slump in air travel following 9/11, and rising maintenance costs. That same day, in a desperate bid to keep the planes flying, Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Atlantic, offered to buy the seven British Airways Concordes for £1 per aircraft, the same amount BA had paid the government in 1984 for each plane. With BA claiming the service was unprofitable, but rejecting Branson's offer, any dreams of even an occasional flight managed by a heritage trust was crashed. The Concorde's last west-bound flight, on October 23 2003, saw Windsor Castle illuminated in honour. On 24th October 2003, Concorde made its last commercial flight, from New York to London.

The end of Concorde perhaps, but not the end of the supersonic dream - the Japanese government has been actively funding research into supersonic flight, according to reports, and a new Japanese-French agreement was signed at last year's Paris Air Show, committing the two governments to make that dream a reality in the future.