Flight of the Concorde

The Concorde traces its roots back to 1947, when American military pilot Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier.

His success in a rocket-powered aircraft prompted research into the development of a supersonic passenger plane.

In 1962, the British and French governments signed an international treaty for the joint design, development and manufacture of a supersonic airliner.

A prototype of the Concorde was introduced in 1967. Nine years later, the plane, which travelled more than twice the speed of sound, entered service with Air France and British Airways.

Here are some of the milestones in its history:

1947: American aviator Chuck Yeager breaks the sound barrier in a U.S. military plane, two days after breaking two ribs while riding a horse.

1962: French and British manufacturers agree to cooperate on the development of a supersonic airliner.

1969: The Concorde lifts off from France on its first test flight, in March. The next month, another Concorde takes off from England. Both planes are displayed at the Paris Air Show that year.

1972: British Concorde tours 12 countries. China states intention to buy two of the planes. British Airways orders five and Air France orders four.

1973: Concorde lands at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport on its first visit to the U.S.

1975: Concorde makes two return flights from London to Gander, Nfld., in a single day.

1976: The Concorde begins commercial service at Air France and British Airways. The plane wins praise for its technological sophistication but it never earns back the billions of tax dollars invested in it. Protests emerge about its noise and lack of fuel economy during an oil crisis.

1977: A British Airways Concorde completes its first London to New York commercial flight. Also, on the 50th anniversary of Charles Lindbergh’s historic flight from New York to Paris, a Concorde flies the same route in 3 hours 44 minutes. Lindbergh’s time was 33 hours 29 minutes.

1986: A British Airways Concorde makes its first round-the-world flight, covering 46,000 km in 29 hours and 59 minutes.

1996: A Concorde crosses the Atlantic Ocean, between New York and London, in a new record flight time of two hours, 52 minutes and 59 seconds.

1999: Two British Airways Concordes fly in formation to chase the total eclipse of the sun.

2000: An Air France Concorde crashes after takeoff from Paris in July, killing 113 people and forcing Air France and British Airways to ground their supersonic jets for over a year.

2001: Overhauled Concordes return to service two months after the 9-11 terrorist attacks, in the midst of one of aviation’s worst slumps.

2002: Concorde flies up the Mall in London with the Red Arrows to celebrate the Queen’s Golden Jubilee.

2003: Air France and British Airways both retire their Concordes, citing low passenger numbers in the wake of the 2000 crash, the slump in air travel after the 9-11 attacks and rising maintenance costs.

2010: A trial starts near Paris, to determine who was responsible for the 2000 crash. The proceedings are expected to last four months.