The Wings Stayed On!: New Concorde SST Museum in Barbados

Apr 19, 2007

New Concorde SST Museum in Barbados

Bridgetown, Barbados, April 17th, 2007

In a spectacular multi-media display which left top-flight guests in awe, the island's latest visitor attraction - the Barbados Concorde Experience - was officially unveiled recently in a ceremony marked with glitz and glamour.

Delivering the feature address, Minister of Tourism and International Transport, Noel Lynch, said that the new facility would help to accelerate Barbados' tourism industry to even higher heights.

Addressing over 350 guests at Spencer's Plantation, Christ Church, the Minister said that the Concorde Visitor Experience would help the island to soar above other destinations.

He explained: "Today's event gives Barbados a stronger branding image which is closely associated with excellence and luxury. The Concorde in-flight attraction would help to place Barbados in a league by itself and ensure the sustainability of its tourism industry."

Flown in especially for the event was retired Concorde captain, Mike Bannister, who described the exhibit as being the most impressive in the world.

Bannister, who was the youngest pilot to fly the supersonic jet, recounted that Barbados, will always hold many treasured memories for him.

"The most memorable experiences of piloting Concorde which will always be flying in [uniform] with the Red Arrows over Buckingham Palace to salute the Queen; secondly it was flying to Barbados for the very first time; and thirdly, flying the aircraft back 'home' to Barbados for the final time in 2003."

The $3.5 million (US) facility, which is managed by Goddards Shipping Tours Ltd, boasts an interactive flight school, a departure lounge, an observation deck, and an in-flight experience multi media presentation.

The Barbados Concorde Experience opened to the general public on Monday April 16 from 9:00am to 6:00pm which will be seven days per week. Admission for local residents is $28.00 (Bds) for adults and $20.00 for children, while for non-residents it is $35.00 for adults and $25.00 for children. Special group rates are available for students and visitors travelling in groups will receive special rates.

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Similar museum experience (?) in Scotland.
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Some facts and figures about Concorde:
The aircraft travelled at 23 miles per minute
Flew twice the height of Mount Everest (60,000 feet)
Expands seven inches while travelling at supersonic speeds
Only 20 Concordes were manufactured, six for development and 14 for commercial aviation operations
On early evening transatlantic flights departing from Heathrow or Paris, it was possible to take off at night and catch up with the sunrise in the west

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What"s this about?

An eclectic series of articles based on my experiences as a commercial pilot. Sometimes behind-the-scenes tales; sometimes more technical descriptions of Jet Transport Aircraft - and the people who fly them. While the stories are based upon actual experiences and real people, I use composite characters and made-up names*. If they seem familiar, they are. They're the people you live and work with every day. The world is full of interesting people - if we only knew!

The title of this blog comes from my first observation after test-flying my home-built aircraft: "The wings stayed on!" And later I realized that life is often like that. We are continually faced with new adventures. And though we study and train and prepare as much as we can, finally we have to launch and put all this preparation to the test. And unexpected things still happen. As the bumper sticker says, Life Happens. And we deal with it - hopefully with a good dose of humour and hope. And if the "wings stayed on!" well at least that's the main thing. And everything else is just details.

My stories are usually drawn from looking back over my career, which thankfully has been pretty dull. Trust me. When flying a commercial airliner, boring is good. You wouldn't like exciting... So don't expect many stories about engines exploding, and wheels falling off, and cabins catching fire. Though that kind of stuff goes on, thankfully, it hasn't been my experience. My stories are the more mundane things, the little things that inhabit real life.

And while mundane is the reality of modern airline flying, still it's an amazing feat, a dramatic and dynamic accomplishment that we shouldn't take for granted. Perhaps day-in, day-out our world-wide airline industry represents our civilizations' most complex achievement. And though it has become mundane we should never forget that the real drama lies in the times when these bigger disasters are too close for comfort. The times when some small factors could produce seriously different outcomes.

Sometimes all the calm around you is an illusion -- a little like the movie Jurassic Park where the investors are touring the not-quite-ready-for-opening facility, while the technicians thrash away at command central, trying to keep everything together - trying to keep up the facade that it's all under control. But if it is, it's not by much.

Oh yeah, one more thing. Like everyone in the airline industry who's blogging, I'm hoping to write a book, and I'm practicing on you folks. I'm always trying to hone my story-telling skills so if you have any comments please leave them. Also, please respect the copyright thing.

Thanks.

Aluwings