Concorde's sailing Itinery

Hi,

Big Bird's swan song - via Thames and the North Sea

Hugh Muir and Graeme Ewens
Monday March 22, 2004
The Guardian

For Concorde it will be the final voyage. And the slowest. And, to the relief of those who opposed the supersonic flights, the most ecologically sound.
In an operation officials tried to keep under wraps, the retired airliner known as G-BOAA - the first to undertake commercial flight with British Airways - is to sail down the Thames on a barge as part of its journey to a final resting place in the Museum of Flight in Edinburgh.

It will already have been partly dismantled at Heathrow. Engineers are expected to remove the tail section and part of the wings to fit beneath London's bridges, but not the trademark nose cone.

The fuselage is due to be transported from Heathrow by road to join the new seagoing and inland waterway barge Terra Marique on the river at Isleworth on April 4. Later that day it will be towed to Brentford, where it will anchor overnight.

Then it will be towed down the river for a photo opportunity outside the Houses of Parliament on the morning of April 6. That afternoon it will be carried past landmarks such as the London Eye, Tower Bridge, Canary Wharf and the Thames Barrier.

At Gravesend, it will have a brief stop before embarking on the remainder of the journey around the east coast to Scotland. Once there, G-BOAA will travel overland on the A1 to a new hangar at East Fortune airfield. The entire journey should take a week.

Thousands of Concorde enthusiasts are expected to line the Thames to witness the trip but the experience may be diminished by the fact that before and after the photo opportunity, the fuselage is expected to be covered up.

Many enthusiasts have complained that they are being prevented from marking the occasion as they see fit. Some wanted to hire passenger boats, or even hovercraft, to sail alongside the vessel but fear they will be kept away by the authorities.

One enthusiast, writing in a Concorde chatroom said: "So many times we have waved her off at Heathrow and welcomed her home the next day that we really must be allowed to witness this departure too and wish her a final 'God speed'. I really cannot believe that we are going to be treated like lepers once again as AA makes her 'last journey'."

Another complained about the dismantling process. "Why oh why are they removing the tail cone (which I would imagine is riveted on) for the journey but leaving the nose intact (which I presume is more easily removed due to the fact that it hinges)?"

The collaboration between the British and French governments yielded 16 Concordes, seven of them owned by BA. Since being retired last October, all have been earmarked for museums. Without licences from the Civil Aviation Authority they cannot fly.

One will remain at Heathrow, another at Airbus UK in Filton, Bristol, and yet another at Manchester airport. Three have gone abroad, to the Museum of Flight in Seattle, the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum in New York, and the Grantley Adams airport in Bridgetown, Barbados.

*******************************************

STS

[seaviewuk]

[daz]

when we lived in Glasgow , very near airport we got use to noise until one day we hear a very loud plane . It was concord wow

wow wow


Daz

[gem]

For a 'tour' of Concorde, courtesy of BBCi and some photos of Concorde on it's final journey.