Happy 50th Anniversary Concorde!

[SteveG]

First flight of Concorde 001 in successful test over Toulouse, France March 2, 1969


celebrating Queen's Golden Jubilee 2002

You can see one on the deck of the Intrepid Museum complex on Pier 86 here in NYC. Free to see from the outside (as a walk-on to the site)
Guided tour: https://www.intrepidmuseum.org/guided-tours Take off on a unique exploration of the Concorde G-BOAD, the fastest commercial aircraft to cross the Atlantic Ocean. Learn about the aerodynamic advances responsible for this technological marvel, designed in the 1960s and operational until 2003. This tour offers guests the rare opportunity to enjoy the comfort of the Concorde’s first-class cabin and get an up-close look inside its sophisticated flight deck. Recommended for ages 10+. Visitors younger than five will not be permitted on this tour.
Visitor safety: This tour requires navigating stairs. The majority of the tour is seated, though portions of the tour require walking and standing.

General: $20 adults (13+) | $15 seniors (65+ w/valid ID) | $15 children (5–12)
Members: $15 adults | $10 seniors | $10 children (5–12)
Active or retired military or veterans (w/ valid ID): $15

I saw one describing a huge arc across the sky with its wings tipped at a deep angle while circling into JFK airport. I was awestruck.

[JoeM]

My brother's best friend's wife was a manager at BOAC during the time of the Concorde. She managed to get free tickets on it to London for my brother, his wife, her and her husband. I think my brother said the cost was $4K a ticket at that time. My brother sat next to Arnold Palmer, the golfer, for the flight and at the end of the flight, when disembarking, each passenger was given an engraved pewter flask commemorating the date of the flight. He said he could actually see space and the outline of the earth when it was at maximum height.

[voodoopenguin]

Many years ago when we lived just south of London Concorde would fly over our house so we saw it regularly. It would be visible at exactly the same time on each occasion as Concorde was given priority over all other aircraft. If there was a problem at the airport the other flights would be bumped down the order to allow Concorde to fly on time.

Paul

[MrNoBody]

Anyone remember the Boeing 2707, SST that never was...



my BIL was an engineer @ GE on the design team for the GE4 turbojet engines
intended to power the beast.

[testcase]

MrNoBody wrote:
Anyone remember the Boeing 2707, SST that never was...



my BIL was an engineer @ GE on the design team for the GE4 turbojet engines
intended to power the beast.

Remember it? I had a reservation on it! The night Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, PanAm was handing out "reservations" to ride on the "Space Plane" they expected to have in the future. This was in NYC's Central Park in a steady rain storm. Most people braved the weather and, stayed in the park where huge screens had been set up for the expected crowd to watch and experience this historic event. It was an AMAZING night! :oldfogey:

PS: my dad started as a Flight Steward with PanAm just after WWII broke out (a hernia was found during his induction physical on 12/8/1941. The Army inducted his two older brothers but, my dad needed to get the hernia repaired and, a clean bill of health for six months after said repair. Dad got a job with PanAm as a Flight Steward. When my dad went back to the Army, at some point, it came out that dad was Flight Crew aboard PanAm's Clipper Ships. Dad was told that he couldn't enlist in the Army because he was already part of the Navy (crewman on Flying BOATS)! After Basic Training, dad was commissioned as a U.S. Navy Ensign and, promptly shipped to a seaplane base in Canada! As a Petty Officer, the Canadians assigned him a "batman" (valet, which somehow pissed him off) and, some time later, he got promoted to Lieutenant and reassigned to a seaplane base in the Carolinas. He desperately wanted to "get across the pond" to where his brothers were fighting but, he couldn't catch a break (much to my mom's relief). After the war, he was still a Lieutenant while his oldest brother made Sergeant and the middle brother was a regular "grunt" (but they all survived). Being the youngest brother with the highest rank remained a sore point for the oldest brother for the rest of his life. All my dad ever wanted to do was to follow his big brothers into the Army but, fate had different plans. Had my dad still been alive when PanAm received their first "Space Plane", he would have been aboard as a Senior Flight Purser. Dad died before PanAm (otherwise, that would have killed him). My dad had 46 years seniority with PanAm when he died and, was PanAm's most senior Flight Check Purser. Dad, I hope you're smiling as I write this; I sure am!

[Ombligo]

My uncle took the QE2 to Europe and flew back on the Concorde. I recall him saying after his last trip that the QE2 had become a dump but the Concorde was the only way to fly overseas.

[Robert M]

Hi everyone,

The Concorde held a sense of wonder to me when I was a kid. Supersonic jet! Fly across the Atlantic in 3.5 or so hours? The sonic boom? Yahoo, awesome! I always hoped to fly on it one day.

Robert