The AÃÆ'Â © rospatiale/BAC Concorde ( ) is a British-British-powered turbojet supersonic passenger aircraft operated from 1976 to 2003. It has a maximum speed more than double the speed sound in Mach 2.04 (1,354 mph or 2,180 km/h on cruise ship height), with seating for 92 to 128 passengers. First flown in 1969, Concorde began operations in 1976 and continued to fly for the next 27 years. This is one of only two commercially operated supersonic transport; the other was the Soviet-made Tupolev Tu-144, which operated in passenger service from 1977 to 1978.
Concorde developed jointly and produced by Sud Aviation (later AÃÆ' Â © rospatiale) and British Aircraft Corporation (BAC) under the Anglo-French agreement. Twenty aircraft were built, including six prototypes and development aircraft. Air France (AF) and British Airways (BA) are the only airlines that buy and fly Concorde. The aircraft was used mainly by wealthy passengers who were able to pay a high price in exchange for speed and Concorde luxury services. For example, in 1997, the price of a round-trip ticket from New York to London was $ 7,995, more than 30 times the cost of the cheapest option to fly this route.
Estimated cost of the original program of Ã, Â £ 70 million underwent massive overruns and delays, with the program eventually costing Ã, Â £ 1.3 billion. It is this extreme cost that is a major factor in production much smaller than anticipated. Another major factor affecting the viability of all supersonic transport programs is how supersonic route options are ultimately confined to oceanic crossings only to prevent the disruption of sonic boom in populated areas. With only seven airframes operated by Britain and France, the cost per unit is not possible to close, so the French and British governments absorb development costs. British Airways and Air France are able to operate Concorde with profit, regardless of the cost of very high maintenance, as Concorde is able to maintain high ticket prices.
Among other destinations, Concorde flies regular transatlantic flights from London's Heathrow Airport and Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia, and Grantley Adams International Airport in Barbados; it flew this route in less than half the time from another plane.
The name Concorde, meaning "harmony" or "unity", was chosen to reflect the cooperation on the project between England and France. In the UK, any or all of the types are known simply as Concorde , without any definite articles being . Concorde won the 2006 Great British Design Quest hosted by the BBC and Museum Design, beating other famous designs such as BMC Mini, miniskirt, Jaguar E-Type, London Tube map, and Supermarine Spitfire. The type was retired in 2003, three years after the fall of Air France Flight 4590, where all passengers and crew members were killed. The general decline in the commercial aviation industry after the September 11 attacks of 2001 and the end of maintenance support for Concorde by Airbus (the successor companies of AÃÆ' Â © rospatiale and BAC) also contributed.
Video Concorde
Development
Studi awal
The origins of the Concorde project date to the early 1950s, when Arnold Hall, director of the Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) asked Morien Morgan to form a committee to study the concept of supersonic transport (SST). The group met for the first time in February 1954 and delivered their first report in April 1955.
At the time it was known that the resistance at supersonic speed was strongly associated with the wing span. This led to the use of very short, very thin trapezoid wings as seen on the control surface of many missiles, or on planes like Lockheed F-104 Starfighter or Avro 730 that the team studied. This team outlines a basic configuration that looks like an enlarged Avro 730.
This same short range produces very little lifting at low speeds, resulting in very long runoff and high landing speeds. In SST design, this will require enormous machine power to take off from the existing runway, and to provide the required fuel, "some very large aircraft" are generated. Based on this, the group considers the concept of SST unfeasible, and instead suggests continuing low-level studies into supersonic aerodynamics.
Delta slim
Soon after, Johanna Weber and Dietrich KÃÆ'¼chemann at RAE published a series of reports on the new wing planform, known in England as the concept of "delta slend". The team, including Eric Maskell whose report "Three Dimensional Flow Separations" contributes to an understanding of the physical properties of separate streams, working with the fact that delta wings can produce strong vortices on their upper surfaces at high angle of attack. The whirls will lower the air pressure and cause the lift to be greatly increased. This effect has been known before, especially by Chuck Yeager at Convair XF-92, but its quality has not been fully appreciated. Weber suggests that this is not just curiosity, and the effect can be deliberately used to improve low-speed performance.
The KÃÆ'¼chemann and Weber paper changed the whole nature of supersonic design almost overnight. Although the delta has been used on aircraft prior to this point, this design uses a plan that is not much different from the wings swept from the same range. Weber notes that the lift of the vortex is enhanced by the length of the wing it should operate more than, suggesting that its effect will be maximized by extending the wings along the fuselage as far as possible. Such layouts will still have good supersonic performance inherent in short ranges, while also offering reasonable takeoff and landing speeds using vortex generation. The only downside to such a design is that the aircraft must take off and land a very "high nose" to produce the necessary vortex lift, which causes questions about the low speed handling quality of such designs. It is also necessary to have a longer landing gear to produce the required angle of attack while still in the runway.
KÃÆ'¼chemann presented the idea at a meeting in which Morgan was also present. The test pilot Eric Brown reminded Morgan's reaction to the presentation, saying that he immediately arrested him as a solution to the SST problem. Brown considers this moment as the real birth of the Concorde project.
Supersonic Transport Advisory Committee
On October 1, 1956, the Ministry of Supply asked Morgan to form a new study group, <
STAC states that SST will have an economic performance similar to the existing subsonic types. Although they will burn more fuel on a cruise ship, they will be able to fly more sorties over a period of time, so fewer planes are required to serve a particular route. This will remain economically profitable as long as the fuel represents a fraction of the operational cost, as it did at the time.
STAC suggests that two designs naturally fall out of their work, transatlantic models flying around Mach 2, and short-range versions flying in may Mach 1.2. Morgan suggested that 150-passenger transatlantic SST would cost around Ã,  £ 75 to Ã,  £ 90 million to be developed, and would operate in 1970. A shorter 100-passenger versions smaller version would cost perhaps Ã,  £ 50 up to Ã, £ 80 million, and ready for service in 1968. To meet this schedule, development must begin in 1960, with production contracts left in 1962. Morgan strongly advises that the US is already involved in similar projects, and that if Britain failed to respond that it would be locked away from the aircraft market that he believed would be dominated by the SST aircraft.
In 1959, a study contract was awarded to Hawker Siddeley and Bristol for the initial design based on the delta delta concept, developed as HSA.1000 and Bristol 198. Armstrong Whitworth also responded with internal design, M-Wing, for shorter category categories with lower speed. Even at this early stage, both STAC and government groups are looking for partners to develop designs. In September 1959, Hawker approached Lockheed, and after the formation of British Aircraft Corporation in 1960, the former Bristol team immediately initiated talks with Boeing, General Dynamics, Douglas Aircraft, and Sud Aviation.
Ogee planform selected
KÃÆ'¼chemann and others at RAE continued their work on the slim delta throughout this period, considering the three basic forms; a classic perpendicular delta, a "gothic delta" rounded out to look like a gothic arch, and a rounded "ogival wing" into ogee shape. Each planform has its advantages and disadvantages in terms of aerodynamics. As they work with these forms, practical attention grows so important that it forces the selection of one of these designs.
Generally a person wants to have a center of wing pressure (CP, or "lift point") close to the center of gravity of the plane (CG, or "balance point") to reduce the amount of control power required to pitch the plane. When the plane layout changes during the design phase, it is common for CG to move forward or backward. With a normal wing design, this can be overcome by moving the wings slightly forward or back to explain this. With delta wings that run most of the plane's length, this is no longer easy; moving the wings will leave it in front of the nose or behind the tail. Studying the various layouts in terms of CG changes, both during design and changes due to fuel use during flight, the planform ogee is coming to the fore soon.
While the wing planform is growing, so does the basic concept of SST. The original type of Bristol 198 was a small design with almost pure slim delta wings, but evolved into a larger Type 223.
Partnership with Sud Aviation
At present the same political and economic concerns in France have led to their own SST plans. In the late 1950s, the government requested the design of the government-owned Sud Aviation and Nord Aviation, as well as Dassault. Third re-design based on the slender delta of KÃÆ'¼chemann and Weber; Nord suggests a ramjet-powered design flying at Mach 3, the other two are Mach 2 jet designs that resemble each other. Of the three, the Sud Aviation Super-Caravelle won a design contest with medium-sized design deliberately sized to avoid competition with transatlantic US designs they suspect were already on the drawing board.
As soon as the design was completed, in April 1960, Pierre Satre, the company's technical director, was sent to Bristol to discuss the partnership. Bristol was surprised to find that Sud's team had designed a very similar plane after considering the SST problem and came to the same conclusion as the Bristol and STAC teams in economics. He later revealed that the original STAC report, marked "For British Eyes Only", has been secretly authorized to France to win political support. Sud makes small changes to the paper, and presents them as their own.
Not surprisingly, both teams found many things to agree on. France does not have a large modern jet engine, and has already concluded they will buy British designs as well (as they had on the previous Subsonic Caravelle). Since the two companies have no experience in the use of high heat metals for airframes, the maximum speed around Mach 2 is chosen so that aluminum can be used - above this speed of friction with the air warming the metal so that aluminum begins to soften. This lower speed will also speed up development and allow their design to fly before America. Finally, everyone involved agrees that the wing shaped ogee KÃÆ'¼chemann is the right one.
The only dispute is its size and reach. The British team is still focused on the design of 150 passengers serving transatlantic routes, while France deliberately avoids this. However, this proved not to be a possible barrier; common components can be used in both designs, with shorter range versions using locked planes and four engines, longer with a stretched body and six engines, leaving only the wings to be extensively redesigned. The team continued to meet until 1961, and at the moment it is clear that both planes will be much more alike despite different seating arrangements. The single designs appear differently especially in the fuel load. The more powerful Siddeley Olympus Bristol engine, developed for the TSR-2, allows designs to be powered by just four engines.
Cabinet response, agreement
While the development team met, French Minister of Public Works and Transport Robert Buron met with British Aviation Minister Peter Thorneycroft, and Thorneycroft immediately revealed to the cabinet that France is far more serious about partnerships than any other US company. US companies have proven to be uninterested in such ventures, perhaps because of the belief that the government will fund development and will falter in partnership with European companies, and the risk of "giving" US technology leadership to European partners..
When the STAC plan was presented to the British cabinet, a very negative reaction was generated. Economic considerations are considered highly questionable, especially since these are based on development costs, now estimated at Ã, Â £ 150 million, which are repeatedly controlled by the industry. The Ministry of Finance in particular presents a very negative view, indicating that there is no way for the project to get a positive financial return for the government, especially given that "the overly optimistic industry notes (including the current history of TSR.2) wise to consider Ã, Â £ 150 million [cost] to be too low. "
This concern led to an independent review of the project by the Critical Scientific Research and Development Committee, which met on a topic between July and September 1962. The committee ultimately rejected the economic argument, including considerations to support the industry created by Thorneycroft. Their report in October suggested that there could be no immediate positive economic outcome, but that the project should still be considered for the simple reason that others would be supersonic, and they feared they would be locked out of the future market. On the contrary, it seems that the project will not have a significant impact on other, more important and more important research efforts.
After a sufficient argument, the decision to proceed eventually falls into an unlikely political possibility. At that time, the British pressed for entry into the European Joint Market, controlled by Charles de Gaulle who felt the British Special Relations with the US made them unacceptable in the pan-European group. The Cabinet feels that signing an agreement with Sud will pave the way for the entry of the Stock Market, and this is the main determinant for moving forward with the deal. It is this belief that caused original STAC documents leaked to France. However, De Gaulle speaks of the European origin of the design, and continues to block Britain's entry into the Common Market.
The development project is negotiated as an international agreement between the two countries rather than a commercial agreement between the company and includes a clause, originally requested by the UK, imposing severe penalties for cancellation. The draft agreement was signed on November 29, 1962.
Naming
Reflecting the agreement between the British and French governments that led to the construction of Concorde, the name Concorde is from the French word concorde ( IPA: Ã, [k ?? k ?? d] ), which has an English equivalent, concord . Both words mean agreement , harmony or unity . The name was officially converted into Concord by Harold Macmillan in response to little felt by Charles de Gaulle. At the French launch in Toulouse in late 1967, British Technology Minister Tony Benn announced that he would change the spelling back to Concorde . This created a nationalist uproar that subsided when Benn declared that the term "e" represents "Excellence, England, Europe and Entente (Cordiale)". In his memoir, he tells a story of a letter from an angry Scottish who claims: "[Y] ou talks about 'E' for England, but partly made in Scotland." Given Scotland's contribution in providing the nose cone for the plane, Benn replied, "[I] also 'E' for 'cosse' (French name for Scotland) - and I may have added 'e' to waste and 'e' for escalation too! "
Concorde also acquired unusual nomenclature for aircraft. In general use in the UK, this type is known as Concorde without an article, rather than the Concorde or a Concorde .
Sales efforts
Described by International Flights as "flight icon" and "one of the most ambitious but commercially defective projects", Concorde failed to meet its original sales target, despite initial interest from some airlines.
Initially, the new consortium was intended to produce one long-term version and one short-range version. However, the prospect does not show interest in the short-term version and it is dropped.
A full-page ad, promoting Concorde, was published in the May 29, 1967 edition of Flight Week & amp; Space Technology . The ads forecast the market for 350 aircraft in 1980 and boasted Concorde's head start from the US SST project.
Concorde had a great deal of trouble that caused a grim sales performance. Costs have spun over development to more than six times the original projection, arriving at a unit cost of £ 23 million in 1977 (equivalent to Ã, Â £ 131.14 million in 2016). The sonic explosion made a supersonic trip to the land impossible without causing complaints from the citizens. World events have also damped the outlook for the sale of Concorde, the 1973-74 stock market crash and the 1973 oil crisis have left many airlines cautious about aircraft with high fuel consumption levels; and new wide-body aircraft, such as the Boeing 747, have recently made subsonic aircraft significantly more efficient and present low risk options for airlines. While carrying a full load, Concorde reached 15.8 miles of passengers per gallon of fuel, while Boeing 707 reached 33.3 pm/g, Boeing 747 46.4 pm/g, and McDonnell Douglas DC-10 53.6 pm/g. Trends emerging in industries that support cheap airline tickets have also caused airlines like Qantas to question the suitability of the Concorde market.
Orders of consortium (ie, non-binding options) for over 100 long-term versions of major airlines of the day: Pan Am, BOAC, and Air France are launch customers, with six Concorde respectively. Other airlines in order bookings include Panair do Brasil, Continental Airlines, Japan Airlines, Lufthansa, American Airlines, United Airlines, Air India, Air Canada, Braniff, Singapore Airlines, Iran Air, Olympic Airways, Qantas, CAAC, Middle East Airlines, and TWA. At the time of the first flight, the options list contains 74 options from 16 airlines:
Test
Design work is supported by previous research programs studying the characteristics of low-flying delta wing flights. A Fairy Supersonic Delta 2 was modified to carry the ocee planform, and, renamed to BAC 221, used for flight testing of high speed flight envelopes, the Handley Page HP.115 also provided valuable information on low-speed performance.
Construction of two prototypes began in February 1965: 001, built by AÃÆ' Â © rospatiale in Toulouse, and 002, by BAC in Filton, Bristol. Concorde 001 conducted the first flight test from Toulouse on March 2, 1969, tested by AndrÃÆ'Â © Turcat, and first performed supersonic on October 1st. The first British-made Concorde flew from Filton to RAF Fairford on April 9, 1969, driven by Brian Trubshaw. Both prototypes were presented to the public for the first time on 7-8 June 1969 at the Paris Air Show. As the flight program progressed, 001 embarked on a sales and demonstration tour on 4 September 1971, which was also the first transatlantic crossing at Concorde. Concorde 002 followed on 2 June 1972 with a tour of the Middle East and the Far East. Concorde 002 made its first visit to the United States in 1973, landing at the new Dallas/Fort Worth Regional Airport to mark the opening of the airport.
Although Concorde initially had a lot of customer interest, the project was hit by a large number of order cancellations. Paris Le Tupolev's competing Soviet Tupolev Tu-144 wreckage has shocked potential buyers, and public attention to environmental problems presented by supersonic aircraft - sonic explosions, noise and take-off pollution - has resulted in a shift in public opinion about SST. In 1976, four countries remained prospective buyers: Britain, France, China and Iran. Only Air France and British Airways (the successors of BOAC) take their orders, with both governments taking a cut of every profit made.
The United States canceled Boeing 2707, its rival supersonic transport program, in 1971. Observers claimed that opposition to Concorde on the basis of noise pollution had been encouraged by the United States Government, having no competitors of its own. The US, India and Malaysia all override Concorde's supersonic flight over noise issues, though some of these restrictions are then relaxed. Professor Douglas Ross characterizes the restrictions placed on Concorde's operations by the administration of President Jimmy Carter as an act of protectionism against American aircraft manufacturers. Concorde flew to a height of 68,000 feet (20,700 m) during flight test in June 1973.
Maps Concorde
Design
General features
Concorde is a delta delta plane ogival with four Olympus engines based on those employed in Avro Vulcan's strategic bomber RAF. This is one of several commercial aircraft that uses tail design (Tupolev Tu-144 the other). Concorde is the first aircraft to have a fly-by-wire flight control system (in this case, analog); the avionics system used by Concorde is unique because it is the first commercial aircraft to use a hybrid circuit. The main designer for the project is Pierre Satre, with Sir Archibald Russell as his deputy.
Concorde pioneered the following technologies:
For high speed and flight optimization:
- Double delta (ogee/ogival) wing-shaped
- Ramp system engine air intake variables are controlled by digital computers
- Supercruise ability
- Thrust by wire, the predecessor of the currently controlled FADEC engine
- Section droop-nose for better landing visibility
For saving performance and increased weight:
- Mach 2.0 2.0 (~ 2,179 km/h or 1,354 mph) rotation speed for optimum fuel consumption (minimum supersonic drag and turbojet engine more efficient at higher speeds) Fuel consumption in Mach 2.0 and at an altitude of 60,000 feet (18,000 m) is 4,800 gallons per hour (22,000 l/h).
- Especially aluminum construction uses high temperature alloys similar to those developed for aero-engine pistons. This material gives a low weight and allows conventional manufacturing (higher speeds will override aluminum)
- Autopilot automatic and complete autothrottle that allows "hands-off" aircraft control from ascent to landing
- Flight fly-by-wire analog flight control system is fully electrically controlled High pressure hydraulic systems use 28 MPa (4000fb/inà ,²) for lighter hydraulic components, threefold independent systems ("Blue", "Green", and "Yellow") for redundancy, with emergency ram turbines (RAT) stored in the port-inner elevon jack that supplies "Green" and "Yellow" as a backup.
- Air Complex data (ADC) computer for automatic monitoring and transmission of aerodynamic measurements (total pressure, static pressure, angle of attack, side-slip).
- Completely electrically controlled brake-by-wire system
- Pitch trim by shifting forward-and-stern fuels for gravity center control (CofG) on approach to Mach 1 upwards without drag penalty. Pitch trimming by fuel transfer has been in use since 1958 on supersonic B-58 bombers.
- Parts are created using "sculpting mill", reducing the number of parts while saving weight and adding strength.
- There are no additional power units, as Concorde will only visit major airports where inland air outlets are available. Powerplant
A symposium entitled "Supersonic-Transport Implications" was organized by the Royal Aeronautical Society on December 8, 1960. Various views were raised about the possible types of powerplants for supersonic transport, such as installed or buried installations and turbojet or fan-dispensing machines. The management of the boundary layer in the finer installation is placed as simple with only an inlet cone. Seddon from RAE sees "the future in more sophisticated form integration" in buried installations. Another concern highlights the case with two or more machines located behind one intake. Failure of intake can lead to double or triple engine failure. The advantage of the fan channeling over the turbojet diminish the airport noise but with considerable economic penalty with a larger cross section resulting in exaggerated drag. At the time it was considered that noise from turbojets optimized for supersonic voyages could be reduced to an acceptable level using noise suppressors as used on subsonic jets.
The powerplant configuration selected for Concorde, and its development into the design of the certificate, can be seen in the light of the above symposium topic (which highlights airfield noise, boundary management and interaction between adjacent engines) and the requirement that power plants, in Mach 2, tolerate combinations from pushover, sidelips, pull-ups, and slamming throttle without spikes. Extensive development testing with design changes and changes to engine control and control laws will address most problems except airborne noise and interactions between adjacent power plants at speeds above Mach 1.6 which means Concorde "must be aerodynamically certified as twin-engine aircraft above Mach 1.6 ".
Rolls-Royce had a design proposal, RB.169, for the aircraft at the time of Concorde's initial design but "to develop a new engine for Concorde would be very expensive" so the existing engine, already flying on the TSR-2 prototype, was chosen. It is the Olympus 320 turbojet, the first Bristol engine development used for Avro Vulcan bombers.
Great confidence is placed to be able to reduce noise from turbojets and large strides by SNECMA in the design of silencers reported during the program. However, in 1974 the shovel damper projected onto the exhaust was reported to be ineffective. Olympus Mk.622 with reduced jet speed is proposed to reduce noise but not developed.
Located behind the leading edge of the wing, the engine intake has a wing boundary layer in front of it. Two-thirds are diverted and the remaining one-third that goes into the intake does not adversely affect the efficiency of the intake except during a pushover when the boundary layer thickens in front of the intake and causes a spike. Extensive wind tunnel testing helps determine the leading edge ahead of the problem solving intake.
Each machine has its own intake and nacelles machines paired with plate splitters between them to minimize bad behavior from one powerplant affecting the other. Just above Mach 1.6 engine spikes tend to affect adjacent engines.
Concorde needed to fly long distances to become economical; this requires high efficiency of the powerplant. The Turbofan engine is rejected because its larger cross section produces excessive drag. Olympus turbojet technology is available to be developed to meet aircraft design requirements, although the turbofan will be studied for future SST.
The aircraft uses afterburner during take-off and passes the upper transonic regime and supersonic speed, between Mach 0.95 and Mach 1.7. Afterburner is turned off at another time. Because the jet engine is so inefficient at low speeds, Concorde burns two tonnes of fuel (nearly 2% of the maximum fuel load) that slid into the runway. The fuel used is Jet A-1. Due to the high thrust generated even with the idle engine, only two outside engines are run after the landing to facilitate the taxi and wear less brake lining - at low weight after landing, the aircraft will not remain idle with all four engines that require brakes to continue to apply to prevent the plane from rolling.
The intake design for Concorde engines is very important. Intakes should provide a low level of distortion (to prevent engine surges) and high efficiency for all ambient temperatures that may have to be met in the voyage. They must provide adequate subsonic performance for cruise excursions and low engine distortion upon takeoff. They should also provide an alternative path for excess air intake during throttling or shutdown of the engine. The variable intake features required to meet all these requirements consist of front and rear ramps, exhaust gates, additional inlets, and inclines to the disposal nozzle.
As well as supplying air to the engine, the intake also supplies air through the way to a push nozzle. The ejector (or aerodynamic) nozzle design, with the variable exit area and secondary flow from the intake, contributes to good expansion efficiency from take-off to cruise.
Engine failure causes problems on conventional subsonic aircraft; not only did the plane lose thrust on that side but the engine created a resistance, causing the plane to evaporate and headed toward the failed engine. If this happens to Concorde at supersonic speed, it could theoretically cause catastrophic failure of the fuselage. Although computer simulations predict many problems, in practice Concorde can turn off both engines on the same plane side in Mach 2 without the predicted difficulty. During engine failure, the required air intake is almost zero. Thus, at Concorde, engine failures are challenged by the opening of an additional spill door and a gentle extension, which deflects air down through the engine, obtaining lift and minimizing obstacles. Concorde pilots are routinely trained to handle multiple engine failures.
Concorde Air Intake Control Units (AICUs) use digital processors to provide the accuracy needed for intake control. This is the first use of digital processors in the world that are given complete control of authority over important passenger aircraft systems. It was developed by the Electronic Systems and Space (ESS) division of British Aircraft Corporation after it became clear that analogue AICUs mounted on prototype aircraft and developed by Ultra Electronics were found to be inaccurate enough for the tasks at hand.
Concorde thrust-by-wire engine control system developed by Ultra Electronics.
Heating issues
Air compression on the outer surface causes the cabin to heat up during flight. Every surface, such as windows and panels, feels warm to the touch at the end of the flight. In addition to the engine, the hottest part of the supersonic aircraft structure is the nose, due to aerodynamic heating. The engineers use Hiduminium R.R. 58, aluminum alloy, across the plane due to its familiarity, cost and ease of construction. The highest temperature that aluminum can maintain over the life of the aircraft is 127 ° C (261 ° F), which limits the top speed to Mach 2.02. Concorde passes two heating and cooling cycles during the flight, first cooling as it reaches the heights, then heats up after supersonic ride. The opposite occurs when it goes down and slows down. This must be taken into account in metallurgical modeling and fatigue. A test rig is constructed that repeatedly heats up the full-sized wing, and then cools it, and periodically samples the metals taken to be tested. The Concorde aircraft body is designed for the life of 45,000 flight hours.
Due to compressed air in front of the aircraft while speeding at supersonic speed, the aircraft heats up and extends up to 300 mm (almost 1 ft). The most obvious manifestation of this is the open gap in the flight deck between the aviation engineer consoles and the bulkhead. On some supersonic flight planes, flight engineers place their hats in this expanded gap, blocking the lid when it shrinks again. To keep the cabin cool, Concorde uses fuel as a heat sink for heat from the air conditioner. The same method also cools the hydraulics. During supersonic flight, the forward surface of the cockpit becomes hot, and a visor is used to deflect most of this heat from directly reaching the cockpit.
Concorde has ownership restrictions; the majority of surfaces must be covered with highly reflective white paint to avoid overheating of the aluminum structure due to the warming effect of the supersonic flight at Mach 2. The white finish reduces the skin temperature by 6 to 11 degrees Celsius. In 1996, Air France briefly depicted F-BTSD in a blue-dominated livery, with the exception of wings, in a promotional deal with Pepsi. In this paint scheme, Air France is advised to stay on Mach 2 for no more than 20 minutes at a time, but there is no limit to the speed below Mach 1.7. F-BTSD is used because it is not scheduled for long flights requiring an extension of Mach 2 operation.
Structural issues
Due to its high speed, great strength is applied to the aircraft during banks and turns, and causes twisting and damage to aircraft structures. In addition there are concerns over maintaining proper control at supersonic speeds. Both of these problems are solved by changes in the active ratio between shipboard and outboard, varying at different speeds including supersonic. Only the deepest elevation, attached to the hardest wing area, is active at high speed. In addition, the narrow body means the airplane is flexed. This is visible from the point of view of rear passengers.
When a plane passes through a critical engine from a particular fuselage, the center of the pressure shifts backward. This causes the moment to fall on the plane if the center of gravity remains in place. The engineers design the wings in a certain way to reduce this shift, but there is still a shift of about 2 meters. This can be overcome by the use of trim controls, but at high speeds like this, this will dramatically increase drag. In contrast, the fuel distribution along the plane was shifted during acceleration and deceleration to move the center of gravity, effectively acting as additional lean control.
Range
To fly endlessly across the Atlantic Ocean, the Concorde requires the greatest supersonic range of any aircraft. This is achieved by a combination of highly efficient engines at supersonic speed, slim body with high fineness ratio, and complex wing shape for high lift-to-pull ratio. It also requires only carrying small loads and high fuel capacity, and the aircraft is pruned with precision to avoid unnecessary obstacles.
However, as soon as Concorde begins to fly, the Concorde "B" model is designed with slightly larger fuel capacity and slightly larger wings with leading edge bays to improve aerodynamic performance at all speeds, with the aim of extending reach to reach markets in the region new.. It features a more powerful engine with deadly sound and no fuel-hungry afterburner and noisy. It was speculated that it is possible to make a machine with an increase of up to 25% in efficiency over Rolls-Royce/Snecma Olympus 593. This will provide an additional range of 500 mi (805 km) and greater payload, making new advertising routes possible. This was canceled due to some of Concorde's bad sales, but also increased aviation fuel costs in the 1970s.
Radiation concerns
Concorde's high cruising alight means passengers receive nearly twice the flux of extraterrestrial ionizing radiation when they travel with conventional long-haul flights. After the introduction of Concorde, it was speculated that this exposure during a supersonic trip would increase the likelihood of skin cancer. Because the flight time is proportionally reduced, the overall equivalent dose is usually less than the conventional flight over the same distance. Unusual solar activity can cause an increase in incident radiation. To prevent incidents of excessive radiation exposure, the flight deck has a radiometer and an instrument to measure the rate of radiation degradation. If the radiation level becomes too high, Concorde will drop below 47,000 feet (14,000 m).
Cab pressure
The aircraft cab is usually maintained at a pressure equivalent to a height of 6,000-8,000 feet (1,800-2,400 m). Concorde pressure is set to altitude at the lower end of this range, 6,000 feet (1,800 m). Concorde's maximum roaming height is 60,000 feet (18,000 m); Subsonic aircraft typically sail below 40,000 feet (12,000 m).
The sudden drop in cabin pressure is dangerous for all passengers and crew. Above 50,000 feet (15,000 m), depressurisation of the cabin will suddenly leave a "useful time of consciousness" of up to 10-15 seconds for conditioned athletes. At Concorde height, air density is very low; violation of the integrity of the cabin will result in severe loss of pressure so that emergency oxygen masks installed in other passenger jets will be ineffective and passengers will soon suffer from hypoxia despite rapidly drinking it. Concorde comes with a smaller window to reduce the loss rate in case of infringement, a backup air supply system to increase cabin air pressure, and a quick drop procedure to bring the aircraft to safe altitudes. The FAA imposes minimum emergency tariffs for aircraft and records the height of higher Concorde operations, concluding that the best response to pressure loss will be a rapid decline. Continuous positive air pressure will send the pressurized oxygen directly to the pilot through the mask.
Aviation Characteristics
While the subsonic commercial jet took eight hours to fly from New York to Paris, the average supersonic flight time on the transatlantic route was just under 3.5 hours. Concorde has a maximum cruise ship height of 18,300 meters (60,039 feet) and an average speed of the vessel Mach 2.02, about 1155 knots (2140 km/h or 1334 mph), more than twice the speed of a conventional aircraft.
With no other civilian traffic operating at a roaming altitude of about 56,000 feet (17,000m), the Concorde has the exclusive use of a dedicated ocean ducts, or "tracks", separate from the North Atlantic, the route used by other aircraft to cross. Atlantic. Due to the variable nature of wind altitudes that are significantly less variable than the standard roaming standard, this particular SST trajectory has fixed coordinates, unlike standard routes at lower altitudes, whose coordinates are replaced twice daily under forecast weather patterns. (jetstream). Concorde will also be cleared in blocks of 15,000 feet (4,600 m), allowing for a slow climb of 45,000 to 60,000 feet (18,000 m) during the ocean crossing as fuel loads gradually decline. In regular service, Concorde uses an efficient flight profile cruise-climb after takeoff.
The delta-shaped wings require Concorde to adopt higher attack angles at lower speeds than conventional aircraft, but allow the formation of large low pressure vortices across the upper wing surface, maintaining lift. The normal landing speed is 170 miles per hour (274 km/h). Because of this high angle, during the landing approach, Concorde is on the "back side" of the drag force curve, where lifting the nose increases the rate of decline; The plane was mostly flown in throttle and equipped with autothrottle to reduce pilot workload.
The only thing that tells you that you're moving is that sometimes when you fly over a subsonic plane you can see all these 747's of 20,000 feet below you almost appear to back off, I mean you'll be 800 miles an hour or so around it fast from them. The plane was really fun to fly, it was handled beautifully. And remember we are talking about the airplanes being designed in the late 1950s - the mid-1960s. I think it's really amazing and here we are, now in the 21st century, and remain unique.
Brakes and undercarriage
Due to the way the removal of Concorde delta wings, the undercarriage must be extraordinarily strong and high to allow an angle of attack at low speeds. During rotation, Concorde will rise to a high angle of attack, about 18 degrees. Before the rotation, the wings barely lifted, unlike the plane's usual wings. Combined with high airspeed during rotation (199 knots indicating airspeed), this increases pressure on the main undercarriage in a way that was initially unpredictable during development and requires a major redesign. Because of the high angle required during rotation, a small set of wheels is added to the back to prevent tail attacks. The main undercarriage units are swinging toward each other to be stored but because of their height they must also contract telescopically before swinging to clean each other when stored. Four wheel tires in each bogie unit increased to 232 pounds/sq at (1,600 kPa). The undercarriage twin-wheel nose shortens forward and the tires are pumped to a pressure of 191 pounds/sq at (1,320 kPa), and the wheel assemblies carry a spray deflector to prevent water being thrown into the engine intake. Tires are rated for maximum speed on runways of 250 mph (400 km/h). The right nose wheel brings a single disc brake to stop the wheel spin during undercarriage retraction. The port nose wheel carries a speed generator for an anti-skid braking system that prevents brake activation until the nose and main wheel rotate at the same speed.
In addition, due to the average take-off speed of 250 miles per hour (400 km/h), Concorde requires an improved brake. Like most airplanes, Concorde has anti-skid braking - a system that prevents tires from losing traction when the brakes are applied for greater control during launch. The brakes, developed by Dunlop, are the first carbon-based brakes used on aircraft. The use of carbon above equivalent brake steels provides a weight savings of 1,200 pounds (540 kg). Each wheel has many discs that are cooled by an electric fan. Wheel sensors include brake overload, brake temperature, and tire deflation. After a typical landing at Heathrow, the brake temperature is about 300-400 Â ° C (570-750 Â ° F). The Landing Concorde requires a minimum of 6,000ft (1,800m) runway length, this is actually much less than the shortest ever Concorde grounding ever landing, Cardiff Airport.
Droop nose
The drooping Concorde's nose, developed by Marshall's Cambridge at Cambridge Airport, allows the aircraft to switch between efficient to reduce drag and achieve optimal aerodynamic efficiency without blocking the pilot's view during taxi, takeoff, and landing operations. Because of the high angle of attack, long pointed noses block the view and require the ability to droop. The nose of the droop is accompanied by a moving visor drawn to the nose before it is lowered. When the nose is lifted to the horizontal, the visor will rise in front of the cockpit windshield for aerodynamic downsizing.
The control in the cockpit allows the visor to be pulled back and the nose is lowered to 5 Â ° below the standard horizontal position for glide and take-off. After take-off and after cleaning the airport, the nose and visor grew up. Before landing, the visor is pulled back and the nose is lowered to 12.5 Â ° below the horizontal for maximum visibility. Upon landing, the nose is lifted to the 5 Â ° position to avoid possible damage.
The US Federal Aviation Administration has objected to the limited visibility of the protector used on the first two Concorde prototypes, which had been designed before the appropriate high-temperature windshield was available, and thus required a change before the FAA would allow Concorde to serve the US Airport. This led to a redesigned visor being used on production and four pre-production aircraft (101, 102, 201, and 202). Window nose and glass visors, required to withstand temperatures over 100 Ã, Â ° C (210Ã, Â ° F) on supersonic flight, developed by Triplex.
Operational history
1973 Solar Eclipse Mission
Concorde 001 has been modified with roofing holes on the roof for use on the 1973 Eclipse Solar mission and equipped with an observation instrument. It performs the longest observation of the current solar eclipse, about 74 minutes.
Scheduled flights
Scheduled flights start on January 21, 1976 on the London-Bahrain and Paris-Rio de Janeiro route (via Dakar), with BA flights using Speedbird Concorde call signals to notify air traffic controls of the aircraft's unique capabilities. and restrictions, but the French use their normal call sign. The Paris-Caracas route (via Azores) begins on 10 April. The US Congress has just banned Concorde landings in the US, mainly due to citizen protests over the sonic boom, preventing a launch on the coveted North Atlantic route. US Transport Secretary, William Coleman, granted permission for Concorde services to Washington Dulles International Airport, and Air France and British Airways simultaneously began service three times a week to Dulles on May 24, 1976. Due to low demand, Air France canceled Washington service in October 1982, while British Airways canceled it in November 1994.
When the US ban on JFK Concorde operations was lifted in February 1977, New York banned Concorde locally. The ban came to an end on October 17, 1977 when the US Supreme Court refused to overturn a lower court ruling that rejected efforts by the Port Authority and grassroots campaign led by Carol Berman to continue the ban. In spite of complaints about noise, noise reports noted that Air Force One, at the time of Boeing VC-137, was louder than Concorde at subsonic speeds and during take-off and landing. Scheduled services from Paris and London to John F. Kennedy Airport New York started on 22 November 1977.
In 1977, British Airways and Singapore Airlines shared the Concorde for flights between London and Singapore International Airport at Paya Lebar through Bahrain. The aircraft, BA Concorde G-BOAD, is painted with Singapore Airlines shapes on the harbor side and the British Airways livery on the right side of the ship. The service was discontinued after three flights returned due to noise complaints from the Malaysian government; it could only be restored on a new route through Malaysia's airspace in 1979. A dispute with India prevented Concorde from reaching supersonic speeds in Indian airspace, thus the route was ultimately declared unfeasible and discontinued in 1980.
During the Mexican oil explosion, Air France flew Concorde twice a week to Mexico City's Benito JuÃÆ'¡rez International Airport via Washington, DC, or New York City, from September 1978 to November 1982. The worldwide economic crisis during that period resulted in route cancellation this; the last flight was almost empty. Routes between Washington or New York and Mexico City include decelerations, from Mach 2.02 to Mach 0.95, to cross Florida subsonically and avoid creating sonic booms over the country; Concorde then re-accelerated back to high speed while crossing the Gulf of Mexico. On April 1, 1989, on a luxury travel charter around the world, British Airways implemented a change to this routing that enabled G-BOAF to maintain Mach 2.02 by passing through Florida to the east and south. Periodically Concorde visits the region with similar chartered flights to Mexico City and Acapulco.
From December 1978 to May 1980, Braniff International Airways hired 11 Concorde, five from Air France and six from British Airways. It was used on subsonic flights between Dallas-Fort Worth and Washington Dulles International Airport, flown by Braniff flight crew. Air France and British Airways crew then took over for sustainable supersonic flights to London and Paris. The aircraft is registered in the United States and its home countries; European registration is covered when operated by Braniff, retaining full AF/BA. The flight was unfavorable and usually less than 50% booked, forcing Braniff to terminate his tenure as the sole operator of the US Concorde in May 1980.
In the early years, the British Airways Concorde service had a greater number of "no shows" (passengers who booked flights and then failed to show up at the gates to board the plane) than any other aircraft in the fleet.
Caledonian English Flower
After the launch of the British Airways Concorde service, another British carrier, the British Caledonian (BCal), formed a task force led by Gordon Davidson, the former director of Concorde BA, to investigate the possibility of operating their own Concorde. It looks very feasible for the airline's long distance network because there are two unsold aircraft that are then available for purchase.
One important reason for BCal's interest in Concorde is that a review of the 1976 British Government's aviation policy has opened the possibility of BA preparing supersonic services in competition with the sphere of influence of BCal. To address this potential threat, BCal considers their own independent Concorde plans, as well as partnerships with BA. BCal is considered most likely to have arranged the Concorde service on the Gatwick-Lagos route, the main source of revenue and profit in the network of scheduled routes BCal; The Concorde BCal task force assesses the feasibility of a daily supersonic service that complements the subsonic widgets services that exist on this route.
BCal signed a bid to get at least one Concorde. However, BCal is finally set up for two planes to be rented from BA and AÃÆ' Â © rospatiale respectively, which must be managed by BA or Air France. The two-Concorde fleet imagined by BCal will require high levels of aircraft usage in order to be cost-effective; therefore, BCal has decided to operate the second aircraft at a supersonic service between Gatwick and Atlanta, with a stopover at Gander or Halifax. Considerations are given to the service to Houston and various points in the South American network at a later stage. Both supersonic services will be launched at some point during the 1980s; However, the sharp rise in oil prices caused by the 1979 energy crisis caused BCal to rule out their supersonic ambitions.
British Airways buys its Concordes instantly
Around 1981 in England, the future of Concorde looked bleak. The UK government has lost Concorde's operating money every year, and the steps are taking place to cancel service completely. Projected costs come back by greatly reducing the cost of metallurgical testing because the testing rig for the wings has built up enough data to last for 30 years and can be turned off. Nevertheless, the government does not want to continue. In 1983, the managing director of BA, Sir John King, convinced the government to sell direct aircraft to the state-owned British Airways for £ 16.5 million plus first-year profits. British Airways was then privatized in 1987.
Economic operation
In 1984, Pan American accused the British Government of subsidizing the British Airways Concorde air ticket, where the return of London-New York was  £ 2,399 (£ 7076 today), compared with Ã,  £ 1,986 (Ã,  £ 5858) with the first subsonic return of the class, and the London-Washington return is Ã, £ 2,426 (Ã,  £ 7156) instead of Ã,  £ 2,258 (Ã,  £ 6660) subsonic.
The study revealed that Concorde passengers thought the tariffs were higher than they really were, so airlines raised ticket prices to adjust this perception. It was reported that British Airways then runs Concorde with profit.
Estimated operating costs were $ 3,800 per hour block in 1972, compared to actual operating costs of 1971 of $ 1,835 for 707 and $ 3,500 for 747; for the London-New York 3.050 nmi sector, it costs 707 $ 13,750 or $ 3.04c per seat/741 $ 26,200 or $ 2.4c per seat/nmi and Concorde $ 14,250 or $ 4.5c per seat.
Other services
Between March 1984 and March 1991, British Airways flew with the Concorde service three times a week between London and Miami, stopping at Washington Dulles International Airport. Until 2003, Air France and British Airways continued to operate New York services on a daily basis. From 1987 to 2003, British Airways flew the Concorde service Saturday morning to Grantley Adams International Airport, Barbados, during the summer and winter holidays.
Prior to the Air France Paris crash, British and French tour operators regularly operate charter flights to European destinations; charter business is deemed profitable by British Airways and Air France.
In 1997, British Airways held a promotional contest to mark the 10th anniversary of the airline's move to the private sector. The promotion was a raffle to fly to New York held for 190 tickets worth Ã, £ 5,400, to be offered at Ã, Â £ 10. Contestants had to call a special hotline to compete with 20 million people.
Retirement
On April 10, 2003, Air France and British Airways simultaneously announced that they would retire Concorde later that year. They mentioned the low number of passengers after the July 25, 2000 crash, a slump in air travel following the September 11 attacks, and rising maintenance costs. Although Concorde is technologically advanced when it was introduced in 1970, 30 years later, its analog cockpit is outdated. There is little commercial pressure to increase Concorde due to the lack of competing aircraft, unlike other aircraft of the same era as the Boeing 747. At retirement, it was the last plane in the British Airways fleet that had an aviation engineer; Other aircraft, such as the 747-400 modernized, have eliminated its role.
On April 11, 2003, Virgin Atlantic founder Sir Richard Branson announced that the company was interested in purchasing a British Airways Concorde fleet at a price equal to the price they gave - a pound. "British Airways rejected the idea, prompting Virgin to increase its offer up to Ã, Â £ 1 million respectively.Branson claims that when BA is privatized, the clause in the agreement requires them to allow other British airlines to operate Concorde if BA stops doing it, but the Government rejects the clause.In October 2003, Branson wrote in The Economist that his last offer was "more than £ 5 million" and that he intended to operate the fleet "for years to come." The opportunity to keep the Concorde in service was hampered by Airbus's lack of support for maintenance advanced.
It has been suggested that the Concorde was not withdrawn for the reason normally given but it became clear during Concorde's grounding that airlines could make more of a profit carrying first-class passengers on a subsonic basis. The lack of commitment to Concorde from Technical Director Alan MacDonald is said to have undermined BA's determination to continue the operation of Concorde.
Another reason why the Concorde reviving effort has never occurred relates to the fact that the narrow body does not allow for the "luxury" features of subsonic air travel such as space, seats and overall comfort. In Dave Hall's "Guardian" words, "Concorde is an outdated prestige idea that leaves behind the sheer speed of luxury supersonic travel."
Air France
Air France made a Concorde commercial landing in the United States in New York City from Paris on May 30, 2003. The last Air France Concorde flight took place on 27 June 2003 when the F-BVFC retired to Toulouse.
A spare parts auction and Concorde memorabilia for Air France was held at Christie's in Paris on 15 November 2003; 1,300 people attended, and some lots exceeded their predictive value. The French Concorde F-BVFC was retired to Toulouse and continued to function for a short time after the end of the service, should a taxi run necessary to support French court investigations into the 2000 crash. The plane is now fully retired and no longer functioning.
Concorde France F-BTSD has retired to "MusÃÆ' Â © e de l'Air" at Paris-Le Bourget Airport near Paris; unlike other Concordies museums, some systems are being maintained functionally. For example, the famous "drooping nose" can still be lowered and raised. This led to rumors that they could be prepared for future flights for special occasions.
Concorde France F-BVFB is currently at Auto & amp; Sinsheim Technik Museum in Sinsheim, Germany, after the last flight from Paris to Baden-Baden, followed by spectacular transportation to Sinsheim via barges and roads. The museum also has Tupolev Tu-144 on display - this is the only place where both supersonic aircraft can be seen together.
In 1989, Air France signed an agreement to donate Concorde to the National Air and Space Museum in Washington D.C. after the plane retired. On June 12, 2003, Air France honored the agreement, donating Concorde F-BVFA (serial 205) to the Museum after the completion of its last flight. This aircraft is the first Air France Concorde to open service to Rio de Janeiro, Washington, D.C., and New York and has flown 17,824 hours. It was on display at the Smithsonian Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Dulles Airport.
British Airways
British Airways toured North America in October 2003. G-BOAG visits Toronto's Pearson International Airport on October 1, after which it flies to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York. G-BOAD visited Boston's Logan International Airport on October 8, and G-BOAG visited Washington Dulles International Airport on 14 October.
Within a week of a good flight
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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