British Airways - BAW > Reviews (218)

CONCORDE – THE EPITOMY OF ELEGANCE

The recent news that Concorde has been flight-tested with a view to resuming normal service, after the terrible disaster in Paris last year, was eagerly welcomed by the many aviation followers and admirers of this beautiful aircraft.

My wife and I were fortunate enough in 1993 to book a flight, albeit a short one, on Concorde when it visited Humberside Airport (the old WW2 RAF station of Kirmington). Of the three choices, including a supersonic trip, we chose the visit to London with an overnight stay in a five star hotel followed by a return trip to Kirmington on Concorde.

The weather was bright and sunny as we arrived at Heathrow and there was a collective sharp intake of breath as we positively drooled at the sight of this sleek, elegant mistress of the skies. Cameras were well in evidence as enthusiasts snapped away as we gazed in open admiration at this magnificent machine.

Although Concorde was designed to operate at supersonic speeds at an altitude of 60,000 feet, on this occasion for a journey of less than 200 miles, we flew at a much lower height and before we knew it we were descending ready to land in Lincolnshire in less than an hour. It’s even more impressive if you are flying west to New York as
you reach your destination before taking off!! Three hours at Mach 2 is pretty good.

Surprisingly, seating capacity is only 100 passengers, but at least there is ample legroom and the in-flight service is superb. On such a short trip there was no time for a meal but as part of the deal, champagne was served during the flight. As ex- RAF, I was used to flying at speeds of around 200 mph, with all the accompanying noises from thunderous Bristol Hercules piston engines ( this was in the days when Pontius was a pilot!). On Concorde it was virtually noiseless and it was possible to balance a pencil on end on the table, as quoted in publicity releases.

Before we reached Humberside Airport we had a marvellous view of the Humber Bridge prior to landing, which was as smooth as the take-off had been. This then was the end of an exciting two days which we are not likely to forget. As far as the flight was concerned, it was a one-off as we are not in the high income bracket like David Frost, who flies regularly to New York on Concorde.

Let us hope that the test flights have been successful and we shall see this graceful machine flying once again from Heathrow.