The Concorde airliner flew at 1,350 mph, more than twice the speed of sound
ADVERTISEMENTConcorde enthusiasts are welcoming the niews that a collection of memorabilia will be on display in London next month — the 50th anniversary of the supersonic airliner's maiden flight.
The items belong to Concorde superfan Brian Asquith who has been collecting memorabilia since 1968.
Concorde and its history have been a lifelong passion of the 85-year-old, who flew on the aircraft six times. Half of these flights were free of charge after Asquith befriended a pilot through the Concorde Study group he runs. On the 20th anniversary of its first flight, Asquith had the opportunity to fly with the pilot in the cockpit as his "engineer."
"Captain Chemel's sitting in front of me and he's shouting 'Brian, Brian look at this, look at this', and you could see the lights of London going for miles," he recalled, describing the trip as unforgettable.
In total, the aircraft made just under 50,000 flights at a cruising speed of 1,350 mph (2,173 kmh), more than twice the speed of sound.
"She was the fastest civil airliner ever built and the most successful," explained John Carter, Lead Concorde Steward at Brooklands Museum.
The exhibition will include in-flight menus, boarding passes and a vast array of philatelic material. The display will run from 11-14 September 2019 at "Stampex International" at the Business Design Centre in Islington, London.