TIPS FOR YOUR FIRST ADVENTURE
ON CONCORDE:

• SEATS
  All seats on Concorde offer different advantages and disadvantages. Therefore, you must make a choice about what is more important for you. For example, if you want to see out the windows, you will need to be in a window seat. This is because Concorde windows are only about the size of a large orange or apple. This is due to the heat produced at supersonic speeds and also because Concorde is kept at a much higher internal air pressure than other jet aircraft, i.e. more like on the ground than in other planes. Due to the relatively small size of the windows, you will have trouble seeing out if you are not directly against the window. However, the view is really something to see, as you might be able to tell from my web page!
  
  On the other hand, seats on the aisle offer something that you can't get from the window seats. During landings by British Airways, the cockpit door is usually latched into a fully open position. So, if you are sitting on the aisle, you can look up the aisle and see into the cockpit and watch the pilots landing the aircraft. You can also frequently see the landing runway through the nose windows, during approach. This is particularly interesting and pretty at night.

• SITTING IN THE FRONT VERSUS BACK
  The front of the airplane is more quiet and offers a more unobstructed view down, because the delta wing is quite large and starts very close to the front. Only the first few rows have a view down that is not blocked to some degree by the wing. However, the delta wing is full of interesting curves and actually very pretty to see from such close range. It is also something that you can't see on a subsonic plane, whereas you can see the ground on other planes. (Just not from 11+ miles up!) Therefore, depending on what's most important to you, you might enjoy sitting in a spot where you can get a really clear view of the wing. The best view of the wing and control surfaces would be from a window seat at the far back of the cabin. You will also hear much more of the noise of the Olympus engines and main landing gear, if you are in the back.
  
  Perhaps the only seats that would not be best for a new passenger would be on the aisle in the back, because you would not be able to see outside and you would be too far away to see any detail in the cockpit during landing.
  

• FLIGHT CERTIFICATE
  Be sure to get the captain to sign a supersonic flight certificate for you. I was on British Airways, so I do not know if Air France offers the supersonic certificate. You will need to ask them if you are flying on Air France. A good time to do that would be when you check in for your flight.

• SEEING STARS AND THE VIEW ABOVE
  Sadly, there is still too much light to be able to see stars above you, unless you are flying at night. So, despite being so close to the edge of space, you still won't be able to see stars above you in daylight. To see how this would be, imagine the night sky above a large city with many lights. The sky still looks black, but the ambient light washes out the sky too much to be able to see things in the sky. That example is at night, so you can imagine how much light comes off the sea during the daylight hours! However, the good news is that the sky right above you will look quite dark at 60,000 feet.

• PICTURES
  Take plenty of pictures, especially before and after the flight, from outside the airplane. However, during the flight be careful not to get so absorbed in picture taking that you miss the experience of the flight itself.

• NOTE THE NUMBER OF THE SPECIFIC AIRCRAFT
  Before getting on the plane, be sure to note and write down the "G-xxxx" or "F-xxxx" number of the aircraft on which you will be flying. Sould you see it again someday at an airport, air show, or museum, you will know that it was the one that you were on. Very important!!!

• VISIT THE COCKPIT
  Don't miss asking the flight attendants to let you visit the cockpit during the flight. Ask before takeoff if possible, as only a limited number of people may be allowed to visit. If they make a list, you want to be sure that your name is on it.

• TAXI
  During taxi out to the runway, if you are in the very front of the airplane watch how far the nose must extend beyond the edge of the pavement when turning! This is because the nose wheel is so far behind the front of the airplane. The pilots (and the cockpit) are actually hanging out over the GRASS at some points when the airplane is being turned! Imagine the talents one must have to steer Concorde!!!

• TAKEOFF
  If you can see into the cockpit, watch for the slamming of the throttle levers forward, which is the signal for the engine computers to start the takeoff power. Very impressive!
  
  Watch for the high rate of speed of the runway passing the windows (compared to subsonic aircraft) before the wheels leave the ground.
  
  Note the steep angle at which the airplane will climb. This is not only fun but also for safety and also to be a good neighbor. By climbing fast, the aircraft has more altitude to glide in the event of engine trouble. The higher altitude also reduces noise heard in neighborhoods near the airport.
  
  About 15 seconds after liftoff, the power will be brought back suddenly and the nose brought down sharply. You will feel this quite a bit. This is unique to Concorde and is done to further reduce noise heard by people on the ground. It is probably the most abrupt maneuver that you will experience routinely in commercial aviation, but it is a normal part of the operation of the airplane. Don't be fooled into thinking that this is something weird and unexpected that is happening to the airplane. It's perfectly normal.

• BREAKING THE SOUND BARRIER
  As you pass through the speed of sound, marvel at how you will feel NOTHING AT ALL due to the excellent design of the aircraft. This was certainly not the case when Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier the first time!!!

• WARM WINDOWS
  Even if you are sitting on the aisle, don't miss leaning over to feel the warmth on the windows that is created by the speed. Keep in mind that at Mach 2.02, you will be going faster than a rifle bullet.

• DESCENT AND APPROACH TO LAND
  Be watching for the roughness of flying that is appears as the airplane slows down and gets ready to land. This is also perfectly normal. The shaking does not indicate a problem with the plane. As the airplane starts to descend, keep in mind that Concorde has no trailing edge flaps or leading edge slats, because these would create too much drag at supersonic speeds, even when retracted. Therefore, slow speed lift must be created by that beautiful delta wing pushing through the air at an extremely high angle.
  
  Because it pushes the wing at such a high angle when at low speed, Concorde is unique among airplanes in that it experiences INCREASING drag when speed decreases. The high wing angle even creates "tornado" swirls above the wing. These cannot usually be seen, but they are FELT in the form of unusually high amounts of vibration inside the aircraft as it slows down. Part of the energy of the engines goes into creating those swirls of air. You can't see these vortex currents above the wing, but they are still there because that is what keeps you flying!
  
  Therefore, you will hear the power brought way down at first to initially slow the airplane and loose altitude. Then, as the airplane gets closer to the ground, you will start to feel the flying angle being brought up and the power increased. As you get closer to the airport, the pilots will bring the flying angle up higher and higher--to an extremely high angle--and you will hear the power roaring as if the airplane was almost being stood on its tail like a rocket. At that point, you will feel lots of vibration caused by the high angle of the wings pushing through the air. If you can, look out the window at the delta wing against the horizon and imagine the buffeting that the wings are taking and the amount of power that the engines are producing to keep them flying!!!

• LANDING
  You will soon be at the airport and the main wheels will then touch the runway. When that happens, especially if you are sitting toward the back, immediately look up the aisle and watch how QUICKLY the front of the airplane is lowered and the distance that the front must come down in order for the nose wheel to reach the ground. For stability and steering and stopping, the pilots want to get that nose wheel down as soon as possible, so they waste no time in lowering the front of the airplane after the back wheels are on the runway.
  
  If you are sitting in the back, you will feel the main wheels hit the runway. If you are in the front, you will have to pay attention to feel the main wheels, but you will really feel that nose wheel hit. The pavement will make the front of the cabin rumble.

• SAY HELLO
  Say hello to the pilots and the cabin attendants for me!

Sadly, I have only been able to afford one Concorde trip thus far, but even though it was now more than ten years ago, I still remember the whole experience as if it happened yesterday. Someday, I do hope to be able to enjoy a second Concorde flight.

Bon Voyage!!!

Warm regards,

Bruce Graham
November 11, 1999