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Aviation History
2003
2003 - 2547.PDF
roger.bacon@flightinternational.com I'll miss you! I'll miss you too, captaii The end of the affair "When we were younger we thought ourselves the first generation when every one would fly faster than the speed of sound. We were to be the last, not the first." So wrote Matthew Parris in the London Times on 25 October, in his report on the final commercial service of Concorde. It all ended in co-ordi nated fashion - much as it started in 1976 (see opposite) - with the final three passenger-carry ing flights arriving consecutively at London Heathrow on 24 October. The last arrival - the BA002 service from New York - touched down at 16:05, bringing the first super sonic transport era to a close 27 years and nine months after it began. At the post-flight bash, Birdseed Airways chair man Lord Marshall was keen to show the 300 guests who had just arrived on the three flights the BBC footage of their historic arrivals. Imagine his anger when the sound that accompanied the pictures contained commentator and former Concorde pilot John Hutchinson lambasting Birdseed and Airbus for retiring the aircraft while still in her prime, and singing the praises of Sir Richard Branson's efforts to keep her flying. Amid polite groans from the crowd, sound was suddenly lost - apparently interference from all the TV satellite vans parked nearby. The five operational Concordes are being ferried to their permanent homes in the coming weeks. These will be the last flights of the supersonic airliner, as the top neddies at Hairbrush and Birdseed have decided that it would be "impossible" to keep one "heritage aircraft" airworthy. It was "can-do" thinking like this which propelled Europe to the forefront of supersonic transport in the first place! If you would like to hang your own bit of supersonic history on the kitchen wall, then pop along to Christie's in Paris on 15 November, when Air France Concorde memorabilia will be auctioned. The lots include souvenirs, compo nents - ranging from pilot seats to machmeters - commemorative pieces, and a series of exclusive photographs. Proceeds from the auction will go to the chari table Air France Foundation, which has supported various children's causes. Christie's tells me that all lots will be offered without reserve and will therefore be auctioned to the highest bidder. Estimates start from €20 ($24). Jonathan Napier (left) and Mike Bannister bring the last Concorde flight to an end on 24 October Our museum is better than yours! Rover "Follow Me" cars lead the way as Concorde prepares for take-off YEARS AGO AIRCRAFT ENGINEER FLIGHT 31.01.1976 Extracted from former Flight editor Mike Ramsden's report from on board the first British Airways Concorde service: Supersonic Inaugural Europe opened the supersonic age with a Houston-style countdown and a precision double launch which was technically and diplomatically immaculate. O^P The time is 1135hr GMT on January 21 1976. We are in British Airways Concorde G-BOAA, lined up for take off on runway 28L at London Heathrow, Bahrain-bound. Captain Norman Todd, commander, captain Brian Calvert and senior engineer officer John Lidiard are about to halve the size of the of the world at the same time as Capt. Pierre Dudal and his crew Rio-bound out of Paris. Full power and reheat, the carbons are let gently off, and at 1140hr GMT we start to roll. Lift off comes at 1140.35. It is the "end of the beginning" says Ken Binnings, director of Concorde at the Department of Industry. Gordon Davidson, British Airways Director of Concorde, confesses to his original estimate of 100-1 against a successful simultaneous double launch. For the next 700 miles to Venice we cruise at 25,000ft and Mach 0.93 on the cabin bulkhead meter. A "fine view of the Alps on our left," calls the captain and then at 1259hr, he announces the start of our transonic acceleration. The urge is noticeable but I cannot detect, from where I am riding, the expected nudge of the reheat. Noise level, or rather pitch, increases slightly and the new livelier airframe tells us that Concorde is in her supersonic element. I ask Sir George Edwards whether he thinks there will be another doubling of transport speed. "The limitation is money. I don't think we shall go beyond M2.7. We have got Concorde about right...what we have got to do is to increase the range. We have a very strong wing and by adding area to the tips we reduce induced drag and fuel, most of it subsonic, by about 12,0001b. I don't think we'll go beyond M2.7, not in this century." The normality is just unbelievable, says a BA man as we tuck into smoked salmon, roast duck ling, and strawberries and cream at 1,350 mph somewhere off Greece. This from someone who has been on the project for seven years. In reply I quote Sir George Edwards's aphorism: "That was the difficult bit". We start the descent at 1451 hr. In five minutes - strongly braked by reverse thrust - we read sub sonic numbers on the meter. At 325kt I can see the necklaces of Bahrain prickling out the darkness. At 1518hr we feel the touchdown. Whatever hap pens now, man has attained the supersonic age. www.flightinternational.com FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 4-10 NOVEMBER 2003 51
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