All language subtitles for 16e428da46734d539134459070fdeacf_track1_eng

Man: 10, 9...

Narrator: Through engineering,
humans shape and mold our world.

Man: Ignition sequence start.

Narrator:
Extraordinary breakthroughs

Have changed the course
of history and taken us further

Than our ancestors
could have ever imagined.

Man #2: Liftoff. Liftoff.

Narrator: But each new frontier
comes with unknown risks,

And pushing the limits can
have devastating consequences.

Bellingham: No matter how
important you say safety is,

There is still a chance
of disaster occurring.

♪

Narrator: In 1989, a pilot with
thousands of hours of experience

In the skies
made a deadly mistake.

Man: Investigators are now
trying to piece together

Exactly what happened.

Narrator: And in 2000,

A plane that had
captured the world's imagination

Took a tragic tailspin
into a busy hotel.

Concorde's ties did actually
have a history of failure.

Narrator: Although commercial
air transport

Is statistically the safest
means of travel,

These two fatal disasters

Proved our precarious place
in the skies

And had a dramatic impact on
the world of commercial flight.

-- Captions by vitac --
www.Vitac.Com

Captions paid for by
discovery communications

-From the m1 crash...
-Major catastrophe.

The village of kegworth...
-Broke and jackknifed

Into three pieces.
-40 fatal casualties.

-Disorientated...
-Just what happened

To flight 92?
-The right engine having failed.

-Screams and moans.
-10 seconds more

And he'd have made it home.
-There had been no warning.

Man: Flight bd92
indefinite delay.

♪

Narrator: The boeing 737
is the fastest-selling

Commercial jetliner
in boeing history.

Man: The newest arrival in
the boeing family of airliners,

The 737 attracts a crowd.

Narrator: Today, it is operated
by more than 500 airlines.

Since entering service in 1968,

The boeing 737 has transported
over 12 billion people

To destinations
in over 190 countries.

♪

The 737 was originally designed
as a cheap,

Short- to medium-range airliner,

Following on from the success
of the 707 and the 727.

The 737 was seen as reliable
and trustworthy

By all who flew them.

Narrator: Boeing prided
themselves on the safety

And reliability record
of all its aircraft...

Understanding that a poor safety
record in the aviation industry

Would have been a threat
to their corporate survival.

Bellingham: In the 1980s,
following

The international success
of the 737-200,

Boeing brought out the -300,
-400, and -500,

Known as the classics,
with improved wing design

And featuring the cfm56
turbo fan engines.

Narrator: The -400 series
first entered service

In September of 1988.

British midland were
one of the first airlines

To receive
this type of aircraft.

Narrator: British midland
was an airline

With a history
dating back to the 1930s.

They flew to destinations
in europe,

The middle east, africa,
north america, and central asia.

Nowell: Various things about
the aircraft had changed

From previous versions
of the boeing 737.

Narrator: The 737-400 was
slightly longer

Than other 737 models.

It had a more modern flight deck
with different instrumentation.

It also had a lower
ground clearance,

So engineers had redesigned
the engine

With a smaller intake fan.

Components were moved
to the side,

Giving the -400
it's unique, flat bottom.

They had been ground tested,

But they hadn't been
flight tested.

At the time,
it wasn't thought necessary.

Unwin: Changing, for example,
the 737-300 to the -400 series,

The aircraft is still operating
on the same type certificate,

And so although
it would have been tested

During a flight test,

It's not the same as certifying
an entirely new design.

The engine is the device
in an airplane

That is generating the thrust.

We start from a compressor

That is getting air
from the outside,

Is putting that
at a high pressure,

And this high-pressure air

Is delivered to
the combustion chamber.

So inside the combustion
chamber,

Fuel and air are mixed together
and then generates the power.

That particular aircraft
had only been flying

For, I think, 82 days.

There wasn't a simulator
in the u.K. At that time,

And although they were
experienced 737 pilots,

They weren't really
737-400 experienced pilots.

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

Bang.

Narrator: Approximately
13 minutes after takeoff,

The plane was 28,000 feet
in the air

When the flight crew noticed
something was wrong

With one of the engines.

They immediately
sprang into action.

When you suspect that you have
an engine failure,

Your first act is to identify
the failed engine,

And then you verify that
you're actions are correct

And then secure it
by turning off the fuel

And associated systems
to that engine.

♪

♪

Narrator: The flight crew was
under the impression

That the right engine
had failed,

So they reduced thrust
on that engine.

And when the captain announced
that the right engine

Was shut down,
nobody said anything.

♪

Nowell: They've essentially got
a very complex situation.

The first thing that
the captain did

Was to disengage the autopilot.

So they've now got to fly
the aircraft manually.

They've got to speak
to air traffic control,

They've got to declare
an emergency,

They've got to make
arrangements to divert.

At the same time, they've got
to try and diagnose the problem

And do so in a logical
and consistent manner

And take corrective action.

They became task-focused
on diverting

And landing at east midlands.

As part of that process,

The reduced power
on the bad engine.

So as the power was reduced,

The level of vibrations
decreased.

And, apparently, this was
an indicator of a good choice

Of shutting down
the right engine.

Unwin: They diverted
to east midlands,

And while on the approach, as
they lowered the undercarriage

And the flaps and increased
the power on the left engine,

It failed completely.

♪

♪

Narrator: On January 8th, 1989,
what should have been a routine

Flight from london
to belfast turned deadly.

Shortly after takeoff,

A fan blade broke
in the plane's left engine

Causing a pounding noise,
vibrations, and smoke.

Confused about which engine
had failed,

The captain and copilot

Mistakenly shut down the engine
that was still working.

I remember the pilot saying,
"prepare for crash landing."

And leslie boomer said to me,

"it's been nice knowing you,
mervyn."

And he patted me on the back.

On final approach, when they
lowered the undercarriage

And the flaps,
this increased the drag.

They then increased power
on the compromised engine.

They desperately tried
to restart the right engine,

But there was not enough time,
height, or speed,

And the airliner on a crashed on
the m1 motorway near kegworth.

♪

♪

♪

[ sirens wailing ]

♪

Narrator: The plane hit one bank
of the m1 motorway

Traveling at 113 knots,

Clipped the top of trees
bordering the motorway,

And smashed into the opposite
embankment at about 80 knots,

Where it broke and jackknifed
into three pieces.

♪

There were 119 passengers
on board the aircraft.

Of those, 47 unfortunately died.

The eight crew all survived.

I suffered a lot of injuries.
I broke my neck in two places.

I have absolutely
no recollection

Of what happened,
who took me out of the plane.

The emergency response team
at east midlands

Had been placed on alert,

As the incoming british midland
737 had declared an emergency.

Noon: When I first entered,
it was eerily silent

In that part of the aircraft,

But as they realized there was
people getting on the aircraft,

Then there was a lot of screams
and moans and cries for help.

♪

♪

♪

Salter: Myself and another
police officer,

We actually climbed
on the wing of the aircraft

When it was still on fire.

We dragged three people
out of the escape hatch,

Put them into the back
of the police car.

♪

♪

Narrator: Soon after the crash,

Investigators recovered
the black box flight recorders

In hopes of determining
what went wrong on flight 92.

What I can tell you, that it was
almost a major catastrophe

Here last night,
had it not been for the people,

First of all,
in the control tower

At donnington who saw the plane
coming in on a low trajectory

And guessed that it was
going to crash,

From their experience.

They immediately alerted
their own emergency services.

Man: Relatives had waited
throughout the night

In a vip lounge.

There was an information hotline
and counseling from clergyman.

From the plane crash till about
one o'clock in the morning,

Mum found out, yeah,
your husband's alive.

He's in surgery.

My father, desi clarke,

Was a survivor of
the kegworth air disaster,

But about 13 years ago,

He got diagnosed
with huntington's disease,

So that's why I share
his story for him.

Finlay: It doesn't sink in,
really,

How badly injured
I actually was.

You know, I thought,
wait two weeks,

Probably heal up and be all
right again, you know?

I didn't realize I would be
in the hospital for so long.

I was in the hospital for about
five and a half months.

The next day, there was a plane

Put on for family members
to be flown over.

♪

Man: I think all we can say
at the moment

Is that the evidence looks
certainly consistent

With the right engine
having failed before the impact.

Man #2: The call from downing
street came just after midday.

Mrs. Thatcher was due at
east midlands airport

Within the hour,

Expecting a report on the likely
causes of the crash.

-Were you on the left-hand side?
-Yes.

Man #3: The m1 disaster could
raise wider fears

About the safety
of all twin-engined airliners.

Nowell: When it became clear
that the captain had shut down

The wrong engine,

The investigation started to
focus on

Why that might have happened.

And one particular theory
was there could have been

A cross-wiring of the vibration
sensors to the engines.

Narrator: The aviation authority
ordered checks on 737s

To make sure that wires in
the engine fire warning circuits

Were not crossed.

Nowell: There were a number
of aircraft

Which were found
to be cross-wired,

But the aircraft involved
in the kegworth incident

Turned out not to be
cross-wired.

So had the pilots relied
on vibration sensor readings

In the cockpit,
they would have been able

To see which engine
was causing the problem.

Man: After the accident,
captain hunt told investigators,

As soon as the right hand engine
had been shut down,

All signs of smell of smoke
on the flight deck disappeared.

It soon became clear

That there really
was quite a significant problem

With that particular
uprated engine.

Narrator:
Subsequently, an in depth
analysis of the final moments

On board flight 92 would reveal
the true cause of the disaster.

♪

♪

Narrator: In 1989, an engine
failure caused a boeing 737

To crash onto the m1 motorway,

Killing 47 and seriously
injuring 74 passengers.

After the disaster,
an investigation was opened

To determine what went wrong.

Analysis of the engine
from the crash determined

That the fan blades were subject
to abnormal amounts of vibration

When operated at high power
above 10,000 feet,

Which led to excessive
metal fatigue,

Causing them to break off and
to terminally damage the engine.

♪

♪

♪

Man: Boeing says they still have
a lot of faith in the aircraft.

Very good. In terms of the 737,
it's very good.

This is the latest model, and
to date, it's been excellent.

Unwin: Jet engines rotate
at very high rpm,

And if a blade breaks

Or the turbine goes out of
balance in any way, it vibrates.

This is a good indicator
of an impending failure.

The earlier 737s,
it was known and understood

That the vibration indicators
weren't very reliable.

The 737-400 was probably
the first airliner

To have reliable
vibration indicators.

If the crew had been more
adequately trained

And had been aware
that the vibration indicators

Were very reliable
and very accurate,

It would have
helped them diagnose

Which engine had malfunctioned.

Narrator: In the previous model,
the 737 fed air into the cockpit

From the right-hand engine.

This was changed
in the new 737-400

So that air could be released
from both engines.

During the flight,
when the engine failed,

The pilots smelled smoke
in the cockpit.

They assumed this meant
the right-hand engine

Had failed

And made the decision
to shut down the wrong engine,

Leaving the aircraft
dangerously low on thrust.

As an inquest, it was
established that the pilots

Had enough experience
flying the previous 737s

But hadn't had enough advanced
training in the new -400.

One of the direct results
of the kegworth incident

Is that it's no longer possible
to certify a new engine

Simply by ground testing.

So even if the engine's
just an uprated power version

Of an existing engine,

It still has to undergo
thorough flight testing

Before it can be used.

Another change was improvements
to the brakes position.

It was radically revised
when they realized that a lot of

The people that had died,
had been badly hurt,

Were basically hurt
because of the position

They had adopted prior
to impact.

Nowell:
There were recommendations
about pilot training,

Particularly when they're moving
from one version

Of a particular
aircraft type to a new version.

Unwin: A concept called cockpit
resource management, or crm,

Was introduced
whereby the crews were trained

To make use
of all available assets.

For example, in this case,

If they had simply asked
the cabin crew

Which engine was smoking,

They would have said,
"it's the left one."

People in the cabin knew
which engine was smoking,

But the flight deck crew didn't,

And they erroneously
turned off the wrong one.

♪

♪

Unwin: The lines are definitely
blurred at times

Between what constitutes
a new aircraft

And what constitutes a new
variant of the same aircraft.

But there's definitely
a strong financial incentive

For both manufacturers
and airlines to build

And buy, essentially, aircraft

That are on the same
type certificate.

There are clear parallels
between the max crashes

And the kegworth accident.

No boeing 737 max 8s or 9s
will take to the sky,

Not until there is
complete clarity

On what happened in ethiopia
and indonesia.

The aircraft was grounded
in March

Following two deadly crashes.

We have a new type of aircraft.

That type of aircraft has only
been in service for two years.

Investigators are now trying
to piece together

Exactly what happened.

All three accidents involved
experienced 737 crews

Flying a new variant that they
were not experienced on,

Which had been recently
introduced to service.

Clarke: To survive such
a traumatic experience,

It definitely gives you
a new outlook on life.

It leaves you that you just
want to make every day a count.

I feel lucky.

And I have a good friend
in dublin.

He says to me, "mervyn,"
he says,

"I would fly anywhere
in the world with you."

And I says, "why is that?"

He says, "'cause you'll never
be in two airplane crashes,"

He says.

Narrator: As horrific as
the kegworth disaster was,

The event caused
the aviation industry

To implement many
positive changes,

Including safety awareness
and technological advancements.

Today, passengers continue
to fly on boeing 737s

To destinations
all over the world,

But the same would not be true
for the jetliner that crashed

At charles de gaulle
airport in 2000.

Flight 4590 proved to be
the beginning

Of the end
of supersonic passenger planes.

♪

♪

Narrator: Cruising at twice
the speed of sound,

Concorde was the epitome
of power and luxury.

Man: You can be in london
at 10 o'clock in the morning

And in new york
at 10 o'clock in the morning.

That's really special.

It's nice to get to new york
before you've left.

It's the dream of a lifetime.

Absolutely wonderful.

Unwin: From 60,000 feet,
the concorde's passengers

Could literally see
the curvature of the earth

While they sat in
air conditioned comfort,

Sipping champagne
and eating caviar.

Announcer:
The ultimate aircraft,

Many believe
in commercial jet travel.

Man: Ladies and gentlemen,
this is the captain.

We're coming up with twice
the speed of sound.

Nobody knows exactly what's
going to happen

Financially with concorde.

Man: Quite a lot of people
in new york

Do not want concorde
to come here.

Man #2: Every time concorde
takes off,

British airways loses money.

Woman: Passages were forced
to transfer

From a luxury jet to a bus.

Man #3: Public anxiety about
the plane is now reaching

Critical and potentially
crippling heights.

Unwin: The big difference
between concorde

And every other airliner
at the time

Was it was designed
for supersonic flight.

♪

Announcer: Taken off
the secret list,

Uncle sam's new super sabre,
the f-100, makes a public debut

At edwards air force base,
california.

Narrator: The supersonic jet was
born out of the military

And aviation advancements
of world war ii.

Announcer: Like some
long-banished prehistoric bird,

The xb-70 defies description.

Narrator: Which continued
into the cold war arms race

With russia,
the usa, and europe

All vying to have the world's
fastest and deadliest aircraft.

The first supersonic aircraft
was the bell x-1,

Which was a rocket-powered
research aircraft

Flown by chuck yeager
over the mojave desert in 1947.

Announcer: Through the sound
barrier, the first time ever.

Narrator: For an aircraft to be
considered supersonic,

It must be capable of flying
faster than the speed of sound,

Which, at sea level,

Is approximately
768 miles per hour.

When it hits this speed,
it is known as mach 1.

Most airliners travel at 80%
to 90% of the speed of sound.

The reason for that
is quite simple.

As you approach
the speed of sound,

The aerodynamics start
to get quite complicated

And you get shock waves
and so on,

And that's what causes
a sonic boom that you hear

When a supersonic aircraft
flies over.

A sonic boom is caused
when a plane

Is traveling faster
than the speed of sound.

A shock wave is built up
at the front of the plane,

Generating an enormous amount
of sound energy,

Which is released
as an explosive sound.

What we've been hearing over
the country during these trials

Are 12 isolated bangs,

But we are faced in the future
with the prospect

Of regular supersonic flights
over the country.

The fastest air-breathing
aircraft is still,

As far as we know,
the lockheed sr-71 blackbird.

This was a specialized
reconnaissance jet aircraft

Which could cruise at mach 3

And is interestingly
a 1960s design.

How near, technically,
are we to producing

A commercial supersonic
airplane?

An aircraft of this kind
could be in service

By about 1970, I think.

It's actually a part
of the human condition

To want to go
faster and further.

The desire to build a supersonic
airliner was inevitable, really.

Narrator: By the 1960s,

The science behind
supersonic flight

Was so well understood that many
companies started investing

In the development
of supersonic airliners,

Believing this to be
the next natural step

In airliner evolution.

♪

Announcer: 100 passengers
and all their baggage

From london to new york
in three hours --

That's the promise
of the concorde,

The joint anglo-french
supersonic aircraft.

Unwin: It was designed
by a consortium

Of the british aircraft
corporation,

As it was at the time,
and aérospatiale in France.

Narrator:
The anglo-french partnership
hoped to reduce costs

By combining
their engineering knowledge

And building
the aircraft together.

So you had two large
nationalized aircraft companies,

Two governments, and also,
every aspect of designing

And building
a supersonic airliner was new.

The development costs
for concorde rose

From an estimated £70 million
to £1.3 billion.

Primarily because

Just that every aspect
of the machine was new.

Supersonic crews
required new materials,

A different metallurgy,
very complex systems.

Practically every aspect
of the machine

Had to be very rigorously
tested,

As well, before
it could enter service.

Narrator: Other manufacturers
attempted to compete

But struggled.

The american boeing 2702
was canceled

Before any operational
prototypes had even been built.

The russians, as well as trying
to race the west to the moon,

Were also racing for
a supersonic airliner,

And they built their own,
the tupolev tu-144.

It was probably not as
sophisticated as the concorde.

It was also marred
by two crashes,

A very high-profile one
at the paris air show

And one several years
later in russia.

But, also, it probably failed
because, in russia,

The market didn't exist,

Purely because there weren't
rich entrepreneurs

With a burning desire
to get from moscow to murmansk

In the same way
that businessmen

Wanted to get
from london to new york.

Announcer: The organization of
petroleum exporting countries

Imposed its boycott,
and within a year,

Raised prices more than 300%.

There were probably a dozen
different customers

For concordes -- pan am, twa.

Price of fuel rocketed,

And the aircraft
were no longer viable.

Narrator: Originally, around 350
models were expected to be built

And sold by 1980,
but with a rise in oil prices

And a ban on supersonic flight
in some countries...

Man: Their most important
objection concerns noise.

Narrator: ...Potential buyers
were worried.

In commercial terms, it's
a plane but running at a loss,

And one doesn't like
to operate any plane at a loss.

By the time it was ready
for service, every other airline

Canceled its orders, and even
air France and british airways

Didn't want the aircraft
they'd ordered.

But they were essentially
foisted upon them

By their respective governments.

Man: And now she's ready
for takeoff.

Unwin: British airways took six.

Air France also operated
six for about 25 years.

Narrator: In 1976, three years
behind schedule

And severely over budget,

Concorde entered
commercial service.

It was the most advanced
passenger aircraft ever built,

But this impressive achievement
would eventually be overshadowed

By the tragedy to come.

♪

Narrator: In January of 1976,

Concorde celebrated
its first commercial flight.

Its innovative design allowed it
to reach higher altitudes

And faster speeds than air
travel had ever seen before.

Unwin: Concorde was the first
airliner to use fly-by-wire,

Whereby electrical impulses are
used to actuate the controls.

Nowell: Concorde has a very
specific wing design

In order to go supersonic.

It's a delta wing rather
than conventional wing,

And the engines underneath it
are essentially the same

As those in the big military
aircraft like the vulcan bomber.

Unwin: Unlike every other
civil airliner,

Concorde was fitted
with afterburning jet engines,

Which are typically
only fitted to jet fighters.

With an afterburner, extra fuel
is injected into the engine,

Which generates
a lot more thrust.

♪

One of the limiting factors
for concorde's operational

Cruising speed
was actually heat.

At very high speeds,
such as mach 2,

There's a considerable amount
of friction,

And friction causes heat.

The structure of the aircraft
got so hot in flight

That it actually stretched
about a third of a meter.

It was generally thought
to be a very safe aircraft.

But having said that,
there's a relatively small fleet

And not that extensively used.

They were quite young aircraft
in terms of flying hours.

♪

Narrator: On July 25th, 2000
an air France concorde took off

From charles de gaulle
airport in paris.

It was taking a party of germans

To join a cruise ship
in north america.

The concorde takeoff speeds

Were significantly faster
than conventional aircraft.

You're asking a lot more
from its components,

Particularly in the tires.

As concorde went down
the runway,

It ran over a piece
of engine cowling

Which had been dropped
by a previous aircraft

Taking off
about five minutes earlier.

That unfortunately, had made one
of the tires fail,

A huge chunk
of rubber flicked up,

Hit the underside of the wing.

The shock wave
rippled through the tank,

All the fuel started
to stream out,

And the port wing caught fire.

All of this happened at a time

When concorde had passed
what they called v1,

Which is the time where
you're committed to a takeoff.

If the speed is now greater
than v1,

The crew must take the aircraft
into the air,

Even if an engine
has caught fire.

♪

Engine one surged
but failed to recover,

And the thrust
caused the aircraft to roll

By more than 100 degrees.

Interpreter: I looked up
when I saw concorde

Coming straight at me in flames.

I said to myself,
"you're going to die."

♪

♪

[ helicopter blades whirring ]

Brooking: The whole floor
started to tremble.

Saw all the flames,
saw there was no way out

Via the stairs or anything,

And obviously, just went
straight for the window.

Woman: Nothing could have
prepared the people of gonesse

For the catastrophe that's
unfolded on their doorstep.

♪

Narrator: The concorde had
crashed into a hotel

Just outside gonesse, France,

A small town less than

Two miles from the airport,

Killing all 109 people on board

And four inside the hotel.

We saw the plane on fire,
we saw a lot of smoke,

Very, very the big smoke,
and we didn't see the rear tail,

Which was ablaze.

This concorde was 20 years old.

Air France say it had
its last major maintenance

Just four days before the crash.

I just want to say that all
the thoughts of air France

And air France employees
are for the passengers,

The crew, and the other people
who died in the accident.

All the people are very,
very sad

And everybody
is living in fear.

Overnight, british airways made

Exhaustive safety checks
on its fleet.

Today, the airline said
it had complete confidence

In its concorde service.

No way british airways

Could have done
the comprehensive checks

Needed within 24 hours
of the crash.

What was the initial cause
of that catastrophic failure?

The pilot, it seems,
did as much as he could.

The plane, say experts,

Was doomed almost from
the moment it took off.

Unwin: It's the responsibility
of the airport operator

To ensure that the runway
is fit for purpose.

But it wouldn't be possible
for the runway to be inspected

Between every takeoff.

Man: The investigation team
revealed

That the normal practice
of sweeping the runways

Of charles de gaulle airport,

Searching for potentially
dangerous debris,

Was postponed
on the day of the crash.

Narrator:
Not only had the runway not been
checked before the flight,

There were also structural
issues with the plane itself

That could have led
to the fatal crash.

Unwin:
Concorde's tires did actually
have a history of failure.

There hadn't been an accident,

But there'd been
several close shaves.

♪

♪

Narrator: On July 25th, 2000,

Air France flight 4590
burst into flames

And crashed into a hotel
in gonesse, France,

Tragically killing 113 people.

In response,

Air France immediately grounded
its remaining concordes

While the cause of the crash
was being investigated.

Air safety experts today began
a second day of discussions

Into possible improvements
on concorde,

Particularly more
regular checks on its tires.

But when it became clear
that the problem

Was really a potential issue
of shredded tires

Causing problems
in the fuel tank

And a fuel leak,
air worthiness certificate

For the aircraft was withdrawn.

British airways says it
remains confident a solution

Can be found
in the coming weeks.

But the reality
of the engineering tests

Needed to prove that concorde
is once again safe

To fly means it's likely
to be several months

Before these planes
are in the air again.

♪

Narrator: The official
investigation into the accident

Exonerated the pilots and
engineer on board of any blame.

It was eventually determined
that although a piece of plane

Had shredded the concorde's tire
leading up to the crash,

That this was accidental
and not criminal.

♪

♪

Man: Noisy, old fashioned,

But still the most spectacular
aircraft around,

Concorde roared back into
regular operation 16 months

After the paris disaster.

Narrator: In November 2001,

Concorde resumed
commercial service.

Many modifications
were made to the fleet,

Which included securing
the electrical controls,

Lining the fuel tanks
with kevlar,

And installing
specially developed

Burst-resistant tires.

Over $89 million was spent to
get concorde back in the skies.

Nowell: By that stage,
you had the 9/11 incident,

Which gave a sort
of general downturn

In the aviation industry.

She's a terrific airplane,
but like all older airplanes,

They're much more expensive
to maintain.

The company responsible
for providing maintenance,

Support, and backup
to concorde was airbus.

And I think airbus were not
particularly interested

In keeping this rather
small fleet of aircraft flying.

Narrator: The concorde was
finally retired

In October of 2003.

♪

Man: Concorde is the high peak,

One of the wonders
of the modern world.

It's a passing moment in history
and important to be here.

You've had to take
a very tough decision,

But it is the right decision
taken at the right time.

Man #2: Time to say good-bye.

Hard to find anyone here
who thinks it's a good idea.

We're unlikely to see or hear
the like of concorde again.

In fact, the only place you're
likely to see concorde again

Is in a museum.

♪

♪

Narrator: Despite
the tragic horrors

Of kegworth and concorde,

Neither event deterred
passengers from flying.

It really highlights, for me,
the responsibility

That everybody involved
in the industry bears

For aviation safety.

Narrator: Today more than
4 billion passengers

Fly every year.

Air traffic is increasing faster
than anyone predicted.

Supersonic technology
has improved

A lot compared to the time
when concorde was designed.

Narrator: What was once
considered a luxury for a few

Is now seen
as a necessity for many.

Aviation is responsible
for about 3%

Of global carbon emissions,
which doesn't sound a lot,

But, of course, it's an industry
that's likely to grow

As economies
like china or india,

More people want to fly.

The future for passenger travel
is very much focused

On making aircraft
increasingly more efficient.

Narrator: But this will present
enormous new challenges.

How will we handle increasing
air traffic congestion

With potential disaster
just seconds away?

The civil aviation authority
confirmed

The two british airways
jets landing at heathrow

Came within seconds
of collision.

Narrator: Will competition
among airlines

Have dangerous consequences?

The main engine manufacturers
are now thinking

About hybrid solutions
where we have part of the thrust

That is generated or delivered
by electrical motors,

But still maintaining
a combustion core inside.

Narrator: Will manufacturers be
put under increasing pressure

To engineer new technologies
at top speeds?

Only time will tell.

Both the concorde
and kegworth tragedies

Forced people to acknowledge
the realities of air travel.

The disasters ushered
in a much needed new,

Safer, and more
pragmatic era of aviation.

♪