In Concorde, Jonathan Glancey tells the story of this magnificent and hugely popular aircraft anew, taking the reader from the moment Captain Chuck Yeager first broke the sound barrier in 1947 through to the last commercial flight of the supersonic airliner in 2003. It is a tale of national rivalries, technological leaps, daring prototypes, tightrope politics, and a dream of a Dan Dare future never quite realized. Jonathan Glancey traces the development of Concorde not just through existing material and archives, but through interviews with those who lived with the supersonic project from its inception. The result is a compelling mix of overt technological optimism, a belief that Britain and France were major players in the world of civil as well as military aviation, and faith in an ever faster, ever more sophisticated future. This is a celebration, as well as a thoroughly researched history, of a truly brilliant machine that became a sky god of its era.

The story of one of greatest technological achievements of the 20th century told from a pilot's-eye view, which will appeal to all enthusiasts of modern aviation. From her first commercial flight in 1976, and throughout 27 years of service, Concorde was hailed as a technological wonder. The only passenger airliner capable of maintaining speeds in excess of Mach 2 for more than two hours at a time, she became one of the most iconic aircraft ever built. Drawing on a wealth of research as well as his own first-hand experience, former Concorde pilot Christopher Orlebar explores the rich history that forged an aviation legend, and examines the many challenges faced by her designers in their pursuit of supersonic commercial passenger travel. Featuring stunning photography of Concorde, from design and development to her retirement in 2003, this book tells the story of one of the greatest engineering and technological feats of modern history.

Concorde is the world’s most famous passenger transport aircraft and an icon of 20th century design. When British Airways and Air France withdrew their Concordes from revenue service in 2003 it marked the end of a unique era in supersonic air travel. In this full-color tribute to Concorde, Jonathan Falconer has scoured private collections, company archives and picture libraries to bring together a stunning selection of photographs portraying Concorde, from its ground-breaking first flights in 1969, through the glory days with British Airways and Air France, to its swansong in 2003. Many of these photographs are previously unpublished.

This stylishly illustrated book looks back at the future of air travel and is as sleek and elegant as the Concorde aircraft it celebrates - now in an enlarged edition. When the first commercial Concorde flights zoomed off the runways in Paris and London in the late 1960s, crossing the Atlantic in just under three hours, they established a new standard for luxury flight. Powered by 38,000 pounds of thrust and easily recognizable with its delta wing and drooping nose, the Concorde jet embodied the pinnacle of aviation technology and industrial design. It quickly became the preferred mode of transatlantic flight for superstars and business moguls alike. Opening with a lively history of the jet and how it changed travel, the book focuses on the look and feel of the Concorde. Photos of the jet's evolving interiors show how the original, starkly designed cabin gave way to luxury seats and interiors designed by the likes of Raymond Loewy, Sir Terence Conran and Andrée Putman. Filled with fascinating historical and technical background, and drawn from the author's personal collection of more than one thousand Concorde-related objects, this elegant book offers rarely seen historical photography and firsthand contributions from the people who helped create the Concorde experience from take-off to landing and beyond.

The definitive account of the rise and fall of the iconic Concorde plane from British Airways' former Chief Concorde Pilot 'A remarkable story' DAILY EXPRESS 'A stonking good read' FLYER _________ What's it like to fly faster than a bullet? Could you really glimpse the edge of space? Why will we never see Concorde's like again? Mike Bannister was British Airways' Chief Concorde Pilot. One of the few in that legendary aircraft's quarter-century of flight to fully understand both the plane's intricate engineering and what it took to fly her at supersonic speeds. In this definitive account of the rise and fall of the world's greatest aircraft, Bannister explores its origins, development, service, highs, lows and, finally, the terrible crash which ended its flying life. Part celebration, part history, part detective story and part courtroom drama, it's almost as riveting as flying in Concorde itself - almost . . . _________ 'Concorde represented the sheer wondrous genius of the human race' JEREMY CLARKSON

The story of one of greatest technological achievements of the 20th century told from a pilot's-eye view, which will appeal to all enthusiasts of modern aviation. From her first commercial flight in 1976, and throughout 27 years of service, Concorde was hailed as a technological wonder. The only passenger airliner capable of maintaining speeds in excess of Mach 2 for more than two hours at a time, she became one of the most iconic aircraft ever built. Drawing on a wealth of research as well as his own first-hand experience, former Concorde pilot Christopher Orlebar explores the rich history that forged an aviation legend, and examines the many challenges faced by her designers in their pursuit of supersonic commercial passenger travel. Featuring stunning photography of Concorde, from design and development to her retirement in 2003, this book tells the story of one of the greatest engineering and technological feats of modern history.

For over thirty years, Concorde aroused a passion in people from all over the world. This book catalogues the iconic planes last summer in c.100 photographs, capturing the intriguing and sometimes amusing behaviour that Concorde could invoke in people, and the pathos of the end of an era.