First Flight of the Concorde – March 2, 1969

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the first flight of the Concorde, the world’s first supersonic commercial jet. Developed jointly by Britain and France, the Concorde was a remarkable technical achievement, staying in service until 2003. Yet it failed to usher in an era of widespread supersonic commercial travel.

Russia and the United States also had programs for supersonic commercial aircraft in the 1960s. The Soviet Tu-144 entered service but was not very successful, and development of the Boeing SST was canceled after government funding for the project was cut in 1971.

While subsonic commercial aircraft continued to gain in performance and carrying capacity (the Boeing 747 also had its first flight in 1969), the Concorde entered service only because of large government subsidies from France and Britain and, in all, only 14 aircraft were ordered by the two countries.

The Concorde, even with its limited adoption by airlines, had flown a quarter-century without an accident until one crashed at Charles de Gaulle airport near Paris in 2000. As documented in the book Last Days of the Concorde by Samme Chittum, the crash and other safety and commercial concerns eventually led to the Concorde being withdrawn from service in 2003.

While it lasted, Concorde service was a great, albeit very expensive, way to cross the Atlantic. Supersonic: The Design and Lifestyle of Concorde by Lawrence Azerrad celebrates the sleek design of the Concorde and the lifestyle and memorabilia that came out of 30 years of transatlantic service.

If you want to read all about the design and technical details of the Concorde, check out the book Aerospatiale/BAC Concorde by David Leney and David Macdonald. This books contains a wealth of illustrations and photographs of this remarkable aircraft.

The documentary Flying Supersonic traces the history of the Concorde and features interviews with the test and commercial pilots who flew it. It also shows what types of problems must be overcome in order for a new generation of supersonic commercial aircraft to be built.

After the Concorde was withdrawn from service, there was no aircraft to replace it. The Concorde remains a great engineering achievement, but it also remains an object lesson that even a great technological success may not fulfill its initial promise if it falls short in profitability. Supersonic commercial aircraft travel was never able to become as widespread as its boosters had hoped, and it remains to be seen if new designs may change this in the future. In the meantime, former Concorde pilots and enthusiasts have Club Concorde, which aims to keep memories of the Concorde alive.

50 years after its first flight, the Concorde reminds us of that not too long ago many people believed in the future of widespread supersonic travel, a prospect which remains to this day unfulfilled.

Photo credits:
Wikimedia - Concorde 1977 and Concorde 216 (G-BOAF)

- Michael K., West Windsor Branch