CONCORDE
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REFERENCE
INFORMATION
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SPECIFICATIONS
Cockpit
Crew..............................
3 (pilot, co-pilot, and flight engineer)
Seating Capacity......................... 92–120
passengers
Length........................................202 ft 4 in (61.66 m)
Wingspan................................... 84 ft 0 in (25.6 m)
Height........................................ 40 ft 0 in (12.2 m)
Typical Empty Weight.................. 173,500 lb (86.75 tons)
MTOW (Max Take-off Weight)...... 412,000 lb (206 tons)
Max. Cruising Speed.................... Mach 2.04
at Cruising Altitude
Service Ceiling ........................... 60,000 ft
Powerplants ............................... 4 - Rolls/Royce SNECMA
Olympus 593 Mk 610 Afterburning
Turbojets
Dry Thrust ................................. 32,000 each
With Afterburner ........................ 38,050 each
Rate Of Climb ............................ 5,000 feet per minute
Max. Nose Tip Temperature ........ 260 degrees F.
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R
The Aérospatiale-BAC
Concorde is a turbojet-powered supersonic
passenger airliner, a supersonic transport (SST). It was a product of an
Anglo-French government treaty, combining the manufacturing efforts of
Aérospatiale and the British Aircraft Corporation. First flown in 1969,
Concorde
entered service in 1976 and continued for 27 years. Among other destinations,
Concorde flew regular transatlantic flights from London Heathrow and Paris
Charles de Gaulle to New York JFK and Washington Dulles, profitably flying
these routes at record speeds, in less than half the time of other airliners.
With only 20 aircraft built, the development phase represented a substantial
economic loss. As a result of the type’s only crash on 25 July 2000, economic
effects arising from the 11 September 2001 attacks, and other factors,
operations ceased on 24 October 2003. The last retirement flight occurred on
26 November 2003. A former Air France Concorde (F-BTSD) is undergoing
restoration work, and is hoped to be flying in time for the 2012 Summer Olympic
Games.
Regarded by many as an aviation icon, Concorde is a delta-wing aircraft with 4
engines based on those originally developed for the Avro Vulcan strategic
bomber.
Concorde was the first airliner to have a fly-by-wire flight control system and
Double-delta shaped wings designed for high-speed flight. Other unique features
include a variable engine air intake system controlled by digital computers and
a
droop-nose section for better landing visibility.
Concorde also features a mainly aluminum construction for low weight and a
full-regime autopilot allowing "hands off" control of the aircraft
from climbout to
landing. Additionally, Concorde features a Complex Air Data Computer (ADC) for
the automated monitoring and transmission of aerodynamic measurements
(total pressure, static pressure, angle of attack, side-slip) as well as pitch
trim by
shifting fuel around the fuselage for centre-of-gravity control. Parts were made
using "sculpture milling" from single alloy billet, reducing the
part-number count
while saving weight and adding strength.
Construction of two prototypes began in February 1965: 001, built by
Aerospatiale at Toulouse, and 002, by BAC at Filton, Bristol UK. Concorde 001
made its first test flight from Toulouse on 2 March 1969, piloted by Andre
Turcat and first went supersonic on 1 October 1969. The first UK-built Concorde
flew from Filton on 9 April 1969 piloted by Brian Trubshaw.
To be economically viable,
Concorde needed to be able to fly long distances,
and this required high efficiency. For optimum supersonic flight, turbofan
engines were considered, but rejected, due to their larger cross-section which
would cause excessive drag. Turbojets were found to be the best choice of
engines. The intake design for Concorde’s engines was critical. All
conventional
jet engines can take in air at only around Mach 0.5; therefore the air has
to be slowed from the Mach 2.0 airspeed that enters the engine intake.
In particular, Concorde needed to control the shock waves that this reduction
in speed generates to avoid damage to the engines.
Owing to the heat generated by
compression of air as Concorde traveled
supersonically, the fuselage would extend by as much as 300 mm (almost 1 ft),
the
most obvious manifestation of this being a gap that opened up on the flight deck
between the flight engineer's console and the bulkhead. On all Concordes' that
had
a supersonic retirement flight, the flight engineers placed their hats in this
gap before
it cooled, where the hats remain to this day.
The high altitude at which
Concorde cruised meant extra exposure to extraterrestrial
ionizing radiation. To prevent incidents of excessive radiation exposure the
flight deck
had a radiometer and an instrument to measure the rate of decrease of radiation.
If the radiation level became too high Concorde descended to below 47,000 feet.
The aircraft Universal
Airlines flies carries the Tail Number: G-BOAD. G-BOAD first
flew on 25 August 1975 from Filton. It departed from Heathrow for the final time
on
10 November 2003, and flew to JFK airport in New York, from where it was then
transferred (on a barge) to the Intrepid Sea-Air Space Museum located at a pier
along
New York's Hudson River where it can be visited today. G-BOAD spent more time in
the air than any other Concorde at 23,397 hours.
First Flight............................... 2
March 1969
Number Produced of Type......... 20 (including 6 non-airline aircraft)
Unit Cost................................. £23 million in 1977