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[dramatic music]

[majestic music]

- [Sammy] Concorde first flew in 1969.

30 years later,

she was still the world's only supersonic airliner.

There had been many rivals to her crown

but they quickly faded away.

And despite her age, she never failed to win new admirers.

It was not just her awesome speed,

but also her elegant, purposeful lines

that stirred so many souls.

But Concorde's beauty was not the result

of an artist's fertile imagination,

but years of diligent scientific study and research

that pushed back the boundaries

of our understanding of flight.

Today's airliners have a Machmeter

on the flight deck showing the aircraft's speed

compared with the speed of sound, or Mach 1.

But in the early days,

the sound barrier of Mach 1 was a mystery.

No one knew quite what would happen

as an aircraft approached Mach 1.

Early trials gave some ideas.

They showed that as an aircraft nears the speed of sound,

shock waves develop at the leading edges of the structure.

The thin boundary layer of air is heavily compressed,

drag increases, control surfaces can vibrate madly.

The whole aircraft could become unstable and even break up.

[engines roar]

In order to fly faster than the speed of sound,

aircraft would need to be designed

with a completely new wing shape

that delayed the effects of air compressibility.

Much of the early research into aerodynamics was carried out

in Germany during the Second World War.

One of the fruits of their work

was the Messerschmitt Me 262,

which, apart from being the world's first jet fighter,

had a gently-swept wing.

After the war, many of the German scientists

found new employment in America, Britain and France.

[breathtaking music]

One of the first British aircraft to benefit

from this research was the Handley Page Victor

which first flew on Christmas Eve 1952.

The Victor had a swept wing shaped like a crescent.

This is compound swept wing was designed

to delay compressibility effects up to high subsonic speed,

although a Victor did on one occasion,

and unofficially, fly supersonic.

Another development was the delta wing

which first appeared on the Avro Vulcan bomber.

With its four powerful turbojets,

the Vulcan first flew in August 1952,

nearly two decades before Concorde.

1954 was the year when British test pilot,

Roland Bee Beamont, exceeded the speed of sound

in the new ultra-fast English Electric Lightning.

Two years later, another Britain, test pilot Peter Twiss,

set a new world record

of more than 1,800 kilometers per hour.

His Fairey Delta 2 experimental jet

with its wings swept at 60 degrees,

also sported the first droop snoot

to improve forward view at takeoff and landing.

[engines roar]

Experience led to even smarter designs.

The Saab Draken featured a very distinctive wing.

It was a cramped double delta shape,

it's outer section swept at 80 degrees.

The French, too, were busy with delta wings.

The Mirage III proved highly successful.

Its maker, Dassault, liaised with Fairey

to develop an even smarter wing for the Mirage IIIA.

It reached Mach 2.2 as early as October 1958.

[engines roar]

The Mirage IV was intended to be a light bomber

and was designed to fly at twice the speed of sound.

It was also stable at much lower, subsonic speeds.

Another bold French design was the Durandal,

an experimental supersonic jet.

Its shape was designed to fit inside the shockwave

from its nose intake.

Its behavior in the air

made its pilots call it the Flying Slab.

Pierre Satre, its designer,

also masterminded another great success,

the Caravelle airliner.

Later on, he worked on Concorde's development.

[engines roar]

In April 1960, France began its first studies

for a future supersonic airliner,

seen here in its wind tunnel testing.

Meanwhile in Britain, aerodynamic research continued.

The Handley Page 115 was another strange-looking,

but even more useful experimental design.

Designers needed to gain clear practical knowledge

of how high-speed Delta airliners would fly at low speed.

So this low-speed research plane

with a wing that could be fitted

with leading edges of different sweep,

proved crucial in the development of Concorde.

[majestic music]

One of the problems of supersonic flight

was the effect of heating on the aircraft's structure.

The Bristol 188 was built to test the kinetic effects

of supersonic flight.

[lively music]

Late in November 1962, France and Britain signed a deal

to develop a civil supersonic aircraft together.

It led to lengthy negotiations.

There'd never been such a big development deal

between two different countries

with two very different traditions.

In the end, they agreed on details

of who would undertake design, development and production

and there was no cancellation clause.

Four leading aerospace companies would handle the program,

Sud Aviation and BAC, would build the airframe.

Bristol Siddeley, later to become Rolls-Royce,

and Snecma of France would develop

its mighty Olympus engines.

Meanwhile, the Americans didn't want to be left behind,

they, too, proposed new supersonic transports or SSTs.

Lockheed planned an SST that would fly 150 people

at 3,000 kilometers per hour.

And Boeing launched a program to develop an SST

that was just as fast,

but big enough for 250 people and built in titanium.

Four General Electric engines

would produce 23 tons of thrust.

[dramatic music]

But these were only proposals,

in Europe a real program was now underway.

Developments of Europe's first SST needed

to cover much new technical ground.

Research laboratories investigated fuels, lubricants,

paints, plastics, metals, materials

and hundreds of other challenges.

Materials for the new plane's structure

were put through intensive trials

for 24 hours a day over 18 months.

The effects of heat

and pressure on new adhesives were another priority.

New metal-to-metal bonding techniques were developed.

At its peak, Europe's SST research involved 600 companies

and nearly 200,000 skilled workers

on both sides of the English Channel.

For the two nations

it had become a new and exciting challenge.

Another experimental aircraft that played a major part

in SST research was the Bristol 221.

It was a rebuilt version

of the Fairey Delta 2 record holder.

It's job was to confirm the high speed behavior

of a new, refined type of delta wing called an ogee wing.

In theory this type of wing could give the new SST

the range and payload it needed.

In practice, the only way to find out for sure

was to build a flying testbed.

[engines hum]

Another vital factor

for the new SST would be its power class.

A supersonic version of the Bristol Olympus engine

had been developed for Britain's new

and advanced bomber, the TSR-2,

but defense cuts in the mid-1960s scrapped

this highly promising new bomber.

Luckily its engine proved the ideal basis

for developing an even more powerful Olympus for the SST.

[engines roar]

[wondrous music]

Meanwhile, wind tunnel tests helped

to define the new airliner's optimum shape.

The aerodynamic behavior

of the new ogee wing looked promising.

Vortex patterns in the wind tunnel confirmed

the wing's potential.

These trials worked out the affects

of different angles of attack on airflow across the wing.

They also helped to define the position

of the aircraft's engine nozzles.

All four engines would need free,

unhindered air flow at all speeds to work efficiently.

Sud Aviation in France focused

on parts of the structure shown here in yellow.

Many of these parts would be made on the first

numerically-controlled milling machines in Europe.

Again the SST was lifting Europe's technology

to new heights.

[machine hums]

Nearly 20,000 test cycles proved the strength

of Concorde's landing gear, which was designed in France.

A full-scale mockup was built to help confirm the shape

and fit of all the SST's components.

In the days before electronic design on screen,

this was the only way

to make sure the airliner's 240 kilometers

of electric wiring would fit and function properly.

Sections shown here in red were the task of BAC,

the British Aircraft Corporation.

BAC engineers built a mockup of the flight deck as well

to help confirm the radical, new drooping nose

would work in practice.

This droop snoot was essential

to give the flight crew enough forward vision

at takeoff and landing.

All major structural items went through

highly-intensive fatigue tests.

Here we can see how a forward fuselage section was immersed

and pressurized at Sud Aviation's works in Toulouse.

Structures also suffered massive extremes of heating

and cooling in test chambers.

They helped work out the new airliner's

expected fatigue life. [wondrous music]

Rear fuselage sections and the tail fin were built

at BAC's workshops in Britain.

Units were shipped to and from Toulouse and Bristol

to give each country its own final assembly line.

Each center became a source of extreme national pride.

One of the biggest challenges of all was the development

of power class.

After four hard years of research,

development and ground trials,

the first Olympus 593 was test flown

in a converted Vulcan bomber.

Like all jet engines,

the Olympus could only work efficiently

when it received air flowing at subsonic speeds.

So for flights at twice the speed of sound,

a complex system of inlet doors and ducts were needed

in the intakes to feed the Olympus

with smooth air at subsonic speed.

A whole new design of exhaust nozzle was required

to ensure the massive thrust of the Olympus

was used most efficiently.

This pioneering design worked almost perfectly.

It also carried special ducts, called buckets,

to provide reverse thrust

to slow the aircraft after landing.

Final assembly of the prototypes of Europe's SST,

now named Concorde, began in April 1966.

Major subassemblies traveled

between plants in the two countries by air, road and ship,

often on specially-designed trailers.

Wide loads became familiar sights on roads

around Bristol and Toulouse.

Royal Air Force Belfast transports were recruited

to airlift subassemblies.

At both final assemblies plants, the new SST came together

with the highest standards of accuracy.

Tolerances were tighter than ever before.

At last, the two prototypes neared completion.

The sleek, new pride of France

and Britain made its first appearance

at Toulouse in December 1967.

- [Interpreter] But the rollout in December 1967 was,

perhaps, the most emotional moment.

For the first time we saw the aircraft in its entirety,

without scaffolding, painting

and we could appreciate its true size outside the hangar.

And it was at that moment that its beauty,

although it was to be further perfected

in production aircraft, impressed us all.

And I think the same is true

for all the different flight crews

that were to be responsible for flying this aircraft,

which was the fruit of millions of hours of work.

[Andre speaking in foreign language]

- [Sammy] But Concorde also had a rival.

It came in a surprisingly familiar shape

of the Tupolev Tu-144

from the other side of the Iron Curtain.

At once it gained the name, Concordski.

This was the Cold War and Russia was desperate

to go one better than its European rivals.

So the Tu-144 was designed to fly

marginally faster than Concorde at Mach 2.2

and to fly that little bit further,

as far as 6,500 kilometers.

The Russians even scored

by getting the 144 airborne before Concorde,

but that was about the only time Concordski ever edged

in front of the Anglo-French product.

[upbeat music]

Much more threatening competition came

from another direction.

For in the same year that Concorde made its first flight,

another distinctive shape took to the sky.

Boeing's giant newcomer, the 747,

soon made its presence felt.

Concorde's makers watched with concern

as Britain's own national airline, BOAC,

became one of the 747's launch customers.

Boeing's rivalry with Europe's aerospace industry

grew even more intense.

But technologically, Concorde was far ahead

of the big Boeing and far faster.

By March 1969, Concorde was cleared for takeoff at last.

[engines hum]

At 1500 hours on March the 2nd, 1969 in Toulouse,

Chief Test Pilot Andre Turcat released the brakes

of prototype 001.

With engines on full reheat power,

they made a thunderous, glorious noise.

With the whole world watching,

Concorde 001 and the hopes of a new Europe took to the air.

[engines roar]

Turcat kept the undercarriage down

for this first slow, but vital flight.

On the flight deck, every last detail

of the prototype's performance was monitored and logged.

[soft music]

It proved a perfect first flight.

The world's most advanced,

most exciting aircraft had flown at last.

It made a perfect landing.

From this moment on,

Andre Turcat's name rang around the world.

- [Interpreter] But that aircraft

had fixed geometry air intakes.

The air intakes were to direct inlet air towards the engines

and reduce its speed from supersonic to subsonic.

[Andre speaking in foreign language]

The intake regulation systems were not yet ready

and we had to fly with fixed inlets,

which reduced the scope of our tests.

[lively music]

- [Reporter] It's April the 9th, 1969

and Concorde 002 is ready for her maiden flight

from BAC's airfield at Filton.

As in Concorde 001, no passenger seats

but 12 tons of flight test equipment.

Today the six-man crew was led by Brian Trubshaw,

Director and General Manager

of Flight Operations, BAC Filton,

together with his copilot, John Cochrane.

Of thousands of people concerned with the production of 002,

few have awaited this moment more eagerly than those

whose job it is to finally prove the aircraft in the air,

the flight test crew.

[engines hum]

- The great day was interesting, to put it mildly.

I was very excited because we'd had two days of frustration

with the failure flag

on the first pilot's airspeed popping up

every time we did a taxi run up above 80 knots.

And after about the third go to fix it,

I said to the engineers and the designers,

"Well if it works this time we'll go.

"We're not gonna come back and tell you it's working"

and fortunately is was and off we went.

- Concorde 002 is clear takeoff and good luck, gentlemen.

- [Pilot] Fingers crossed.

[speaking in foreign language]

- [Pilot] Full power and reheat.

- [Reporter] At this point, Brian Trubshaw decided

to turn a high-speed taxi run into a first flight.

- Go. - Hey.

- [Viewer] Good job.

[viewer laughs]

Come along.

- [Viewer] So obviously the air this time is all right.

[viewers laughing]

[viewer speaking in foreign language]

[engines roar]

- [Operator] 4002, stand for technique.

Roger, understand what you control.

[engines roar]

- [Operator] 002, you're clear to land from this approach.

- Well on an airplane

where the pilot's eyes are very high off the ground

when the main wheels touch,

you need to

be aware

of the height

quite accurately

and you use radio altimeters

for the last, say 100 feet or so.

And they're called out either by the copilot

or the flight engineer, in the case of the Concorde.

And we were denied their accurate information

on our first flight because they both failed

during the flight from Filton to Fairford.

It wasn't too bad.

I think we arrived about a quarter of a second earlier.

- [Reporter] After a 22 minute flight,

Concorde 002 landed safely at the Royal Air Force Airfield

at Fairford in Gloucestershire,

the British base for Concorde flight operations.

[engines hum]

After years of careful study

and dedication attention to detail,

here was another thrilling and rewarding climax

for the thousands of men and women working in the factories

of British Aircraft Corporation and Sud Aviation

in the knowledge that the British-built Concorde

flew just five weeks after her sister, 001,

and the two Concordes are now flying.

Brian Trubshaw said the flight was cool, calm and collected

and that the crew enjoyed it immensely.

[dramatic music]

- [Sammy] Now with two prototypes flying,

development work could press ahead twice as quickly.

At Farnborough, a full-sized test aircraft was already

well into intensive trials.

Its job was to soak up all the structural punishment

a real Concorde could expect

in one and a half lifetimes in service.

At Toulouse, a similar airframe underwent a grueling series

of static tests to simulate the effects of extreme heating.

Concorde was entering new territory.

Tests were crucial to the program's success.

[soft music]

Fatigue tests showed the structure could stand up

to massive stresses.

They also proved its ability to cope

with repeated heating and cooling during supersonic flights.

Landing gear showed it could withstand heavy overloads.

Concorde's fuel tanks were designed

to help trim the aircraft at different stages of flight.

Fuel could be pumped from one tank to another

to adjust the trim to just the right angle of attack

for different Mach numbers.

Engineers gave each prototype a thorough check

after every flight.

Pre-flight preparation, too, had to be rigorous,

nothing could be left to chance or improvisation.

Each Concorde was a flying laboratory

crammed with instrumentation and measuring equipment.

They bought more knowledge

and more confidence with every flight.

Airborne tests proved this big,

new airliner could fly almost like a fighter.

It was responsive, hugely powerful and fast.

Even at low airspeeds, it proved impressively easy to fly.

[engines hum]

Flight trials continued at pace.

Within just six months

each prototype had logged 120 hours of flying.

This was good-going for a pioneering, high-tech project

of such complexity.

[engines roar]

- [Interpreter] Vibration tests had opened new vistas

in terms of pure speed.

Now we had to increase speed

and with the variable geometry air intake systems,

during the 1970s we were to make progress,

with great prudence but for different reasons,

because we were worried about the possible effects

of an engine cut out or the cut out of two.

The Americans had had many a problem in this field.

Their bomber B-58 Hustler

had crashed several times at Mach 2

and it had accidents due to engine breakdown.

[Andre speaking in foreign language]

- As we operate the airplane

to get the maximum range of the speed

and in so doing, it meant that you operated the engine

as near to what's called the surge line as you dared.

And getting the margins correct,

which meant tinkering with the intake,

was quite a drawn out performance

and it went on right through the whole development program.

- [Interpreter] So we went carefully, step-by-step,

and were pleasantly surprised to find

that aircraft handling was good up to Mach 2

and that even with two engines out on the same side,

the pilot still had several seconds,

which is a long time, you know,

to regain control of the aircraft.

[Andre laughs]

[Andre speaking in foreign language]

[upbeat music]

- [Reporter] For these men,

flying at twice the speed of sound is part

of the daily routine.

Mach 2, about 1,350 miles an hour

or slightly faster than the muzzle velocity

of a .303 rifle bullet.

[upbeat music]

Mach 2 is now routine.

- [Interpreter] Then we were not only concerned

to test fly at high speeds, but also at low speeds

to allow for landings under normal conditions.

In other words, landing at higher angles of attack

than would ever be used by normal aircraft.

[Andre speaking in foreign language]

These were exciting tests.

First we tested straight landings.

Then, simulating a sudden obstacle in the line of approach,

another aircraft crossing our path for example,

simulating avoidance techniques.

So we tested increasingly violent maneuvers

at different approach speeds

and increasingly brutal avoidance maneuvers.

And then we decided to push the aircraft to its limits

with the most violent maneuver possible

and I saw the angle dial increase.

We had a small indicator of angle of attack

and the needle began spinning like a ventilator

and I realized that we would have to react quickly

if we were not to put the aircraft at risk.

The aircraft responded well.

We had gone far beyond the conditions

for which the design office had guaranteed the safety

of the aircraft.

All we had to do was to develop a better safety system

so that today it is impossible for the pilot

to go beyond certain danger limits,

even if his avoidance measures

are violent at approach speeds.

[engines roar]

- [Sammy] Eventually, patiently, tests of the two prototypes

opened up Concorde's flight envelope.

Speed and height proved to be relatively easy parts

of the design to achieve,

but a third factor, range, was just as important.

For without enough range,

Concorde could never enter service

to carry airline passengers.

Concorde also had to fit in

with conventional, much slower aircraft.

Its speed of approach to airports and its ability

to fit into normal approach patterns were essential.

[upbeat music]

Then Concorde began to make international flights.

Its first was to Dakar in Senegal.

Concorde also became a new favorite

at air shows and demonstrations.

Officials from many leading airlines took their turn

to visit, to look, to see, to fly.

They were impressed by Concorde in so many ways.

But one big concern still remained, Concorde's range.

- [Interpreter] Then after this flight to Dakar,

we thought that the best destination for the aircraft

was the Aerospatiale route to South America,

to Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo.

But the prototype didn't have that kind of range

and couldn't cross the Atlantic,

not even the South Atlantic.

[Andre speaking in foreign language]

So we stopped off in the Cape Verde islands,

so it was to shorten the South Atlantic crossing

and from there flew to Cayenne.

And from Cayenne we flew,

what I would call almost a sea route,

over the virgin Amazon rainforest

to Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo.

[dramatic music]

- [Sammy] But then to the immense relief

of Concorde's builders, the first deals were singed.

British Airways ordered five Concordes and Air France, four.

By 1970s standards,

the asking price of $31 million was immense.

Rival airlines backed off,

although some, like China's national airline,

continued to show interest.

In theory, the world's airlines still held options

for more than 70 Concordes.

BAC and Aerospatiale continued to fly Concorde

around the world.

The whole world wanted to see this remarkable new aircraft.

- [Reporter] 002 has done its share of VIP flights.

Australian government representatives go aboard

to learn at first hand what Mach 2 is going to mean

to intercontinental travel.

[majestic music]

- [Sammy] Australia though, also saw some

of the early protests against supersonic transport.

People were starting to get worried about its noise,

its heavy fuel consumption, its sonic boom

and its emissions. [dramatic music]

In the United States,

Boeing realized that the problems of noise pollution

and pure economics were compelling reasons

to abandon its SST program.

Privately, Boeing officials admitted their design

still carried major technical problems

that threatened its promised range and payload.

It was just too ambitious to become a reality.

Meanwhile the Concorde program cruised on.

Britain and France together agreed

to build 16 production-standard aircraft.

These were bigger and more capable than the four prototype

and pre-production models.

Power plants, too, were improving.

By now the Olympus 593s were virtually smoke-free

and highly reliable even at the continuous,

full-power rating required

for cruising at twice the speed of sound.

[upbeat music]

Production moved into top gear at Toulouse and Filton.

New, enormous transport aircraft, called Guppies,

helped move large Concorde subassemblies

between factories in Britain and France.

Before Concorde could earn its ticket

to enter airline service, still more trials were needed.

Water ingestion tests on the Olympus engines showed

that the world's most-powerful turbojets could cope

with huge amounts of rain and spray.

Engines and airframes alike had to show they'd work reliably

at extremes of heat and cold.

Here at Fairbanks, Alaska, Concorde proved perfect

at temperatures as low as minus 45 degrees Centigrade.

[Andre speaking in foreign language]

- [Interpreter] Things changed below minus 30 degrees.

You can't just go 'round as before,

you have to be protected constantly,

your nose, your ears, et cetera.

Then there was more problems with the aircraft,

but they were minor problems.

After having abandoned the aircraft for 36 hours,

that was the rule, for 36 hours at minus 45, we returned.

The first problem was getting into the aircraft.

The door was stuck.

Then the second problem,

inside the cockpit the temperature was minus 27.

But in the end

we were going to have to welcome passengers onboard

and we couldn't welcome them at minus 27.

Second test, heating the cabin.

[Andre speaking in foreign language]

We had to make a last-minute change.

We couldn't tow the aircraft

as a plug had been put into the hole where the hook goes

and we couldn't get it out.

We had to blow hot air onto it for two hours

before being able to pull it out.

Making the original hole just a bit bigger

allowed us to solve the only real problem we had

under freezing conditions.

[lively music]

- [Sammy] In warmer climes, Concorde flew its proud flag

on the Pacific Coast and in Mexico,

where prototype 002 won a tremendous reception.

At Mexico City's airport, 2,000 meters above sea level,

Concorde coped easily with the heat and the thin air.

The SST's reception in San Francisco was more nervous.

Americans could reach the moon but they'd backed down

from developing a competitor to Concorde.

Their nervousness was understandable.

Prototype 002 flew the world.

Anchorage and Los Angeles were just two airports of call.

In South America, the intense global sales effort went on.

In 1975 with Concorde now in the production phase,

the whole program got another big lift.

Concorde received its full certificate of air worthiness.

[dramatic music]

At last, Concorde was clear to enter service

and to carry fare-paying passengers.

Two cabins accommodated 100 passengers

served by two galleys.

Travel agents were overwhelmed

with applications for tickets.

High prices, typically 20% above subsonic,

first-class fares, didn't put people off.

Imminent arrival in airline service also brought a new phase

of crew training for airline personnel.

The clear air and steady weather of Dakar in Senegal

made it an ideal airport for training airline crews.

[engines roar]

Takeoff after takeoff proved the point

that Concorde's makers had stressed right from the start,

that Concorde would be just another easy aircraft to fly,

easy to fit into airport arrival and departure schedules.

[dramatic music]

And then, early in 1976,

Concorde's big moment finally arrived,

it's first scheduled flights with fare-paying passengers.

Two production aircraft took off simultaneously,

one from Paris, one from London.

It was a double moment of triumph,

a new era in air transport.

A tremendous success for its designers and for technology.

One was bound for Bahrain, the other to Rio de Janeiro.

Supersonic flight now became an everyday event

for passengers, complete with a special Concorde standard.

After intense lobbying by Britain and France,

the U.S. agreed Concordes could land at Washington.

And from November 1977, the U.S. cleared Concordes

to use New York airport, too.

And so began the transatlantic success story

that was to run for 25 years.

Concorde supersonic flights soon became routine.

Reliability, punctuality and above all, speed,

proved just what the top of the market demanded.

Meanwhile, Concorde's much haunted Russia rival was running

into bumpy weather.

Crude by comparison, the Tu-144's airframe

and systems couldn't easily cope with flight at Mach 2.

Worst of all, its engines couldn't provide enough power

for supersonic cruise

without running continuously on reheat.

This meant their fuel consumption was enormously high.

In turn, its range fell far short.

After a few token months in Russian national carrier,

Aeroflot's, service flying the mail,

Concordski quietly disappeared from the airline scene.

12 production 144s were built, but few entered service.

Two pre-production aircraft also crashed.

Russia's entry in the supersonic transport race

faded into disuse.

Concorde now stood alone, the undisputed world leader.

[dramatic music]

Concorde scheduled services became part

of those airports' daily routine,

although even the most seasoned travelers

and spectators could never fail

to feel a little excitement every time Concorde flew,

but behind the scenes, nothing was taken for granted.

Preflight preparations were thorough and painstaking.

With passengers paying well above first-class rates,

they expected everything to be perfect.

Routine scheduled flights were just one aspect

of Concorde's working life.

Records were set, such as enabling passengers

to witness two sunrises in one day.

In another stunt, she flew around the globe

in just 32 hours.

But Concorde's sonic boom meant

it could not fly supersonically over most countries,

restricting its usefulness to routes over oceans.

Compared with more modern airliners,

Concorde was costly to keep flying.

It was an aircraft born of the 1960s

when aviation kerosene cost just a few cents a barrel

and the fuel crisis of 1974 more or less put the brakes

on any other sales of the aircraft,

so only Air France

and British Airways put Concordes into service.

[engines roar]

[majestic music]

Concorde's public loved every moment.

The sleek airliner stole the show every time it appeared.

[engines roar]

In Toulouse, the world celebrated the 20th anniversary

of Concorde's first flight with true French flair.

An Air France Concorde even got a special paint scheme.

Many of the program's outstanding leaders received

their ovation, too.

Britain's chief test pilot in the early days,

Brian Trubshaw, celebrated again

with his French counterpart, Andre Turcat.

[Andre speaking in foreign language]

- [Interpreter] So over the many years

of design and development,

we tried to create an aircraft

where the passengers would feel comfortable,

but where the pilot would feel happy, too.

So now you must tell us what you think of this aircraft

that we delivered to you on the 21st of January, 1976.

- [Interpreter] Well I started flying it later,

but I must say that as far as I'm concerned,

it's an aircraft that surprised me.

It surprised me by the way it handled

and by its quality in general.

It's an extremely sensitive aircraft.

It's intelligence surprised me.

You spoke of the help you tried to give the pilot

and in high-altitude flight I must say

that the automatic pilot is remarkably intelligent.

[engines roar]

This aircraft can fly at high speed, at high temperatures,

it climbs fast, it reaches height smoothly--

- [Andre Interpreter] We did our best.

- [Edouard Interpreter] So on the whole it surprised me.

[engines roar]

- I think the Concorde is a wonderful example

of what you can achieve, sometimes in spite of politicians,

if you really mean to.

I mean nobody, nobody thought that such a complex project

could be made to work the way Concorde has worked.

And it did work

because nobody was going to allow it to be a failure.

I think everybody that was involved

on both side of the Channel

are tremendously proud to be in it

and consequently they got on with the job.

Every now and again somebody interfered at the top,

but it happens and it shows you what you can do.

But you have to have determination,

you have to see the other person's point of view sometimes,

you have to have a level of understanding.

But above all,

it's the determination that this is what you want.

The Concorde has had a big bearing in my view

on the very successful formation of Airbus industry.

And Airbus industry has become and will always be

a great competitor to the American aircraft industry

which up to the arrival of the Airbus industry,

was dominating, really, all of the civil world.

[dramatic music]

- [Sammy] For nearly 30 years Concorde enjoyed

a relatively trouble-free life,

but on July the 25th, 2000, tragedy struck.

An Air France Concorde, taking off

from Charles de Gaulle Airport outside Paris, crashed.

There were no survivors.

Debris on the runway had caused a puncture,

but as the tire disintegrated it ruptured a fuel tank,

engulfing the port side in a catastrophic fireball.

The loss of life was tragic enough,

but the accident also resulted

in a crisis of confidence in the aircraft.

The entire Concorde fleet was grounded.

There were some who felt that maybe it was time

to retire Concorde, after all, she was 30 years old

and other problems were beginning to appear.

But in the end it was decided

to make the necessary modifications,

despite the enormous cost.

[uplifting music]

In November 2001, Concorde returned to service.

But by now the world's airlines were facing financial crisis

following a downturn in passenger numbers

that not even Concorde could change.

After barely 18 months, the painful decision was made.

Concorde was to be grounded, this time for good.

On October the 24th, 2003,

Concorde lifted off the runway

at John F. Kennedy Airport, New York, for the last time.

[majestic music] [engines roar]

Thousands gathered at Heathrow to greet her into her end.

[pilot murmurs]

[engines roar]

In the weeks that followed the fleet was dispersed,

with the aircraft going to museums.

The most poignant delivery flight

was Concorde's home landing

on November the 26th to Filton near Bristol,

from where the British part of the Concorde story began

so many years ago.

[engines roar]