The last three British Airways Concordes in 2003. Credit: BAA
Why did the Concorde stop flying, and is there any chance that it might return one day?
There were many reasons that killed the Concorde. This plane was the most powerful commercial pure jet flying from 1976 to 2003.
It flew faster than the earth’s rotation. As such, a passenger could have breakfast in London, get on Concorde, fly to New York and still can have breakfast again on arrival in New York.
Unfortunately, for two decades now, there were no Concorde flights because of the 14 Concordes that were produced, all have all ceased to operate in 2003.
The biggest blow to its cessation was when an Air France flight crashed shortly after take-off from Paris, killing all 109 people on board.
According to investigations, the crash was caused by a burst tire that ruptured the fuel tank, leading to a catastrophic fire.
An alternative theory stated that British investigators and former French Concorde pilots had blamed Air France for 2 contributory causes, namely unbalanced weight distribution in the fuel tanks and the loose landing gear that caused the plane to veer to the left of the runway during take-off..
This caused the plane to strike the metal strip dropped off from another DC-10 that took off 5 minutes earlier. Without the 2 mentioned problems, the plane would have lifted off earlier, avoiding any contact with the metal that had caused the tire to blow up and the subsequent fire.
Aside from this tragedy, high operating cost was another major factor. The plane was not very fuel efficient as it burned a ton of fuel for every single passenger that flew across the Atlantic The ticket was pricey and cost around USD 12,000.
After September 11, passengers load decreased and this was coupled with the popularity of long-haul flights on subsonic planes. As a result, demand for supersonic travel waned.
While there have been several efforts to revive supersonic travel on the Concorde, it is unlikely that it will return to service.
However supersonic air travel looks likely to return. The new plane is called Overture which will replace Concorde as the world’s fastest airliner, reaching speeds of Mach 1.7 or over 1,300 miles per hour and over twice the speed of current airliners.
At 1.7 times the speed of sound, Overture will be able to get to fly from London to New York in just three and a half hours and Los Angeles to Sydney in just six hours and 45 mins, carrying between 65 and 80 passengers on each flight.
Overture flights will be more affordable to most travelers as the manufacturer targets $5,000 fares for the New York-to-London round-trip, while the same route on the Concorde cost $20,000 (adjusted for inflation) in the past;
The first Overture test flights is to take off in 2026 and for the planes to go into public service by 2029.
With the new Overture, many business passengers are looking forward to this Concorde replacement.
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View YouTube video ‘The Crash That Killed Concorde’
here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2keyz6-4HQ
View YouTube video Boom Supersonic Plane | Inside the Boom Overture Plane