concordes fate sealed

[Craig.]

ok final two will be going to scotland, and then the other one will stay at heathrow quite possibly as a gate guard for the new terminal 5. or to somehow replace current mini concorde on the front gate.
no flying for the exact reason i stated before, just way to expensive to keep it for so few flights, especially at sub-sonic speeds

[RollerBall]

I'm Mr Angry about this. The British taxpayer paid for those aircraft and it's pretty obvious that the majority of British taxpayers want to see them flying if it's at all possible.

Now I'm no special fan of Mr Branson, but if he wasn't just doing a publicity stunt and he genuinely was making an offer to TRY to keep them flying, the British taxpayer should INSIST that he's given the chance no matter what British Airways wants to do with the planes.

Sending them off to a**-hole parts of the world where they will just sit and rot I would have thought was NOT part of the deal broached on behalf of the British taxpayer when they were originally handed over to BA.

I see the first one was flown off to Manchester today where it will be ripped apart by bl**dy engineering students for cripes sake!

[Craig.]

hi rollerball. as annoying as it is that the british Tax-payer paid for them, at first, once sold it was all BA, who covered twice as much for it after the sale. but because they own them, the government cant step in at all, people knew this wouldbe the case when the planes were sold.as for rotting, Barbados is the only one i am worried about, as thats the only one without a true museum either there or a firm plan for one. the rest will be well looked after in their new homes, even if they are being stripped for parts.
They cant be kept flying, somply because there are no parts. it was no longer a case of costs, it was simply because Airbus wouldnt supply the parts and no one else could. Branson was even told himself by Airbus they wouldnt give him the parts he needed, or the mechanics to fix it.

[Hagar]

I'm with RollerBall on this. I'm fed up to the back teeth with hearing about the

[RollerBall]

Hear hear. Absolutely spot on. There are dozens of aero engineering works throughout Europe and further afield who would have jumped at the chance of supplying parts and spares for Concorde - probably much cheaper than bl**dy Airbus could have done as well.

Low overheads = low costs = cheaper prices = lower running costs.

[Craig.]

no offense hagar, but BA didnt

[Craig.]

[quote]A technical feasibility study, headed by Captain Mike Bannister, Concorde chief pilot, as to whether a single Concorde can be maintained for non-commercial flying at public events, has been concluded.

Rod Eddington said:

[Hagar]

Craig. As you probably realise by now I'm no fan of BA. From over 35 years experience in support & maintainance of the airline industry I know exactly what the operating costs are. Until recently BA were operating Concorde at a profit, that's after the taxpayer paid for its development & handed it to them on a plate. They have never done the British people any favours believe me.

This whole sad episode reminds me of the unscrupulous property developers who bulldoze listed buildings or hack down protected trees to make way for their blocks of concrete. Once something rare & precious is destroyed you can never replace it no matter how much you punish or fine the culprits.

[Craig.]

well i cant really argue with that one:)
like you and everyone else i am upset about the fact concorde is going, thats not in despute.
And i cant argue BA are like every other airline, guilty of many bad business practises or ethics. and i am sure one day concorde will fly again, maybe a new management or future technology will be able make it a viable option.

and please dont think i dont understand where your coming from with this. I know your one of the people who no-doubt had to pay for this plane out of your taxes, where as i wasnt so it isnt as much of an issue in that department. I honestly do understand your hatred for them:)

[Hagar]

Well I suppose it was an impossible dream but I had hoped for a little more support from our government. They washed their hands of it as usual. I'm disappointed but knowing how much notice they take of public opinion I'm not surprised.

[Craig.]

but like i said, concorde was none of the governments business, once sold that was it. they looked into it when branson first started his rampage for the plane. but they realised there was nothing they could do. its like buying a car, once you have bought it, and everything is signed theres nothing the previous owner can do about it. no matter how much the public wanted it. lets face in a few months the average person will be back to not caring, and the aviation enthusiasts make up prob 10% of the population:)
it may suck, but then again sometimes life does suck, i am cheesed off personally because A: my grandads  major involvement in designing it, and B: because i will never get to fly it if BA ever opens up their sponsorship program again.

[Hagar]

but like i said, concorde was none of the governments business, once sold that was it

Touche......! Hoist by my own petard. I think it was me who pointed that out to you - not so long ago either.  LOL
Despite this being true I'm sure the government could have leaned on BA a little if they so wished. My point is that they couldn't care less what happens to it.

[Craig.]

LOL, without getting too political about this one, as i am loving this discussion/argument:) really.
But i think right now the government have their heads too far up their ass to know whats going on.

[Hagar]

LOL, without getting to political about this one, as i am loving this discussion/argument:) really.
But i think right now the government have their heads to far up their ass to know whats going on.

I'm enjoying it too. I really can't comment - except to point out that there's 2 examples in your last post where the word "too" is appropriate.

Cheers Craig. LOL

[Craig.]

hahahah:) sorry, i keep forgetting about the too and to differance. i really shoudl pay more attention though
Cheers Doug