Concorde facts

Get the facts about the famous plane.

Concorde technical

Concorde took off at 220 knots (c.253mph), 55 knots (c.63mph) faster than most planes.
Dimensions:
Length: 203ft 9 ins (62.1m)
Wingspan: 83ft 8 ins (25.5m)
Height: 37ft 1 ins (11.3m).
Only twenty Concordes were ever built. They were owned exclusively by British Airways and Air France.
The needle shaped nose helped to penetrate the air. It was tilted down at take-off and landing to allow the pilots to see the runway. The nose tip could reach a temperature of 127 degrees Celsius – this was due to the friction of the air at high speed.
Concorde guzzled a staggering 25,629 litres of fuel per hour which led to protests about the environmental impact and noise pollution of the aircraft.

There have been more US astronauts than BA Concorde pilots.
Each flight consisted of the pilot, co-pilot, flight engineer and six cabin crew.
In 1993, Barbara Harmer, a former hairdresser from Bognor Regis, became Concorde's first female pilot.
British Airways limited their cabin crew to a maximum of three years' service to allow as many people as possible the chance to work on Concorde.
Pilots wanting to fly Concorde had to complete an intensive six month conversion programme consisting of a six week technical course, nineteen weeks on the simulator, route briefing and route flying training.

Concorde had a capacity of 100 passengers and 2.5 tonnes of cargo.
More than 2.5 million passengers flew supersonically on British Airways' Concorde since she entered commercial service in 1976.
The standard return fare from London to New York was £6,636.
The sumptuous menu offered passengers the choice of dishes such as lobster truffle salad, smoked salmon fish cakes and breast of guinea fowl. The extensive wine list included some of the finest vintage wines and champagne available.
Passengers were given a variety of branded souvenirs and VIP gifts during their flight. These items are now highly collectable and are selling for vast amounts of money at auction.

In 1993 pop star Suggs from the group Madness hit the world's longest putt down the aisle of Concorde's cabin to raise money for charity. Five miles in two seconds!
Victoria Beckham flew Concorde for three wedding dress fittings in New York in 1999.
Over one million bottles of champagne have been consumed on Concorde passenger flights.
Supersonic celebrities have included: Sir Sean Connery, Joan Collins, Elizabeth Taylor, Sir Elton John, Kate Moss, Rod Stewart, Robbie Williams, Mike Tyson and members of the Royal family
The Ryder Cup was brought back to Europe by Concorde in 1995.