Concorde | |
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![]() A Concorde after takeoff in 1986 | |
General information | |
Type | Supersonic airliner |
Manufacturer | BAC (now BAE Systems) Sud Aviation (now Airbus) |
Status | Retired |
Primary users | British Airways |
Number built | 20 (including 6 non-airline aircraft) [1] [2] |
History | |
Introduction date | 21 January 1976 |
First flight | 2 March 1969 |
Retired | 26 November 2003 |
Twenty Concorde aircraft were built by the British Aircraft Corporation (BAC) during its lifetime; six development aircraft flew between 1969 and 1985, and fourteen commercial aircraft between 1975 and 2003. Of the six development aircraft, two were prototypes, two were pre-production, and two were production aircraft; each type of aircraft was split equally in ownership between British Airways and Air France (ten each).
All development aircraft are preserved, and only two commercial aircraft are no longer intact; F-BVFD was scrapped in 1994 due to corrosion and financial factors, and F-BTSC was destroyed in the 2000 crash of Air France Flight 4590. Sixteen of these aircraft are on display to the public in museums spanning five countries; G-BOAB is stored at Heathrow Airport in the United Kingdom, and G-BOAE is stored at Grantley Adams International Airport in Barbados.
In all there were six "development" aircraft: the two prototypes (001/002), two pre-production (101/102) and two production aircraft (201/202). The two prototype aircraft were used to expand the flight envelope of the aircraft as quickly as possible and prove that the design calculations for supersonic flight were correct.
Both pre-production aircraft were used to further develop the design of the aircraft. Changes to design include different wing planform, more fuel, different engine standard and different air intake systems.
The production aircraft were different in many ways from the original prototypes, necessitating re-examining certain areas to obtain certification.
British Airways had seven production aircraft in commercial service:
As part of tenth-anniversary celebrations on 24 December 1985, British Airways photographed G-BOAA, G-BOAC, G-BOAF and G-BOAG formation flying for their publicity material. [17]
Air France also had seven production aircraft in commercial service:
Of the 20 aircraft built, [1] 18 remain, with 16 on display to the public. [a]
Identity | Photograph | Tenure | Fate | ||||||
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Number | Registration | First flight | Last revenue flight | Last flight | Flying hours | Status | Location | Displayed livery | |
001 | F-WTSS | ![]() | 2 March 1969 | — [b] | 19 October 1973 | 812 | On display | Musée de l'air et de l'espace (Le Bourget, France) | Air France |
002 | G-BSST | ![]() | 9 April 1969 | — [b] | 4 March 1976 | 836 | On display | Fleet Air Arm Museum (Yeovilton, United Kingdom) | British Aircraft Corporation |
101 | G-AXDN | ![]() | 17 December 1971 | — [b] | 20 August 1977 | 632 | On display | Imperial War Museum (Duxford, United Kingdom) | British Aircraft Corporation |
102 | F-WTSA | ![]() | 10 January 1973 | — [b] | 20 May 1976 | 656 | On display | Musée Delta (Paris, France) | Air France |
201 | F-WTSB | ![]() | 6 December 1973 | — [b] | 19 April 1985 | 909 | On display | Aeroscopia (Toulouse, France) | Air France |
202 | G-BBDG | ![]() | 13 February 1974 | — [b] | 24 December 1981 | 1282 | On display | Brooklands Museum (Weybridge, United Kingdom) | British Airways |
203 | F-BTSC [c] | ![]() | 31 January 1975 | 25 July 2000 | 25 July 2000 | 11989 | Destroyed in an air crash on 25 July 2000. | Wreckage stored in a hangar at Le Bourget Airport (France) | |
204 | G-BOAC [d] | ![]() | 27 February 1975 | 18 October 2003 | 31 October 2003 | 22260 | On display | Manchester Airport, (Manchester, United Kingdom) | British Airways |
205 | F-BVFA [e] | ![]() | 27 October 1975 | 31 May 2003 | 12 June 2003 | 17824 | On display | Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center (Chantilly, United States) | Air France |
206 | G-BOAA [f] | ![]() | 5 November 1975 | 12 August 2000 | 12 August 2000 | 22768 | On display | National Museum of Flight (East Lothian, United Kingdom) | British Airways |
207 | F-BVFB [g] | ![]() | 6 March 1976 | 31 May 2003 | 24 June 2003 | 14771 | On display | Technik Museum Sinsheim (Sinsheim, Germany) | Air France |
208 | G-BOAB [h] | ![]() | 18 May 1976 | 15 August 2000 | 15 August 2000 | 22296 | In storage (can be seen from afar) | Heathrow Airport (London, United Kingdom) | British Airways |
209 | F-BVFC [i] | ![]() | 9 July 1976 | 30 May 2003 | 27 June 2003 | 14332 | On display | Aeroscopia Museum (Toulouse, France) | Air France |
210 | G-BOAD [j] | ![]() | 25 August 1976 | 22 October 2003 | 10 November 2003 | 23397 | On display | Intrepid Museum (New York City, United States) | British Airways |
211 | F-BVFD [k] | ![]() | 10 February 1977 | 27 May 1982 | 27 May 1982 | 5814 | Scrapped in 1994 | A small section of the fuselage remains at Le Bourget, France and the nose cone was sold to an American collector. | |
212 | G-BOAE [l] | ![]() | 17 March 1977 | 19 October 2003 | 17 November 2003 | 23376 | In storage | Grantley Adams International Airport | British Airways |
213 | F-BTSD [m] | ![]() | 26 June 1978 | 31 May 2003 | 14 June 2003 | 12974 | On display | Musée de l'air et de l'espace (Le Bourget, France) | Air France |
214 | G-BOAG [n] | ![]() | 21 April 1978 | 24 October 2003 | 5 November 2003 | 16239 | On display | Museum of Flight, (Seattle, United States) | British Airways |
215 | F-BVFF [o] | ![]() | 26 December 1978 | ? | 11 June 2000 | 12421 | On display | Charles de Gaulle Airport (Paris, France) | Air France |
216 | G-BOAF [p] | ![]() | 20 April 1979 | 1 October 2003 | 26 November 2003 | 18257 | On display [30] | Aerospace Bristol (Bristol, United Kindom) | British Airways |
Heritage Concorde is a Concorde-related website maintained by former Concorde engineers and aviation enthusiasts. It has a detailed profile for each aircraft, which is represented by an obelus (†)