“HOW TO CATCH A CONCORDE” – BY PETER HAMPSON

How it all started…

I have a very clear memory of sitting in front of a TV in our family living room at home, with my parents and grandparents all gathered around watching something very special happening on the black and white screen in front of me.

“She flies!” proclaimed Raymond Baxter, the BBC’s celebrated Aviation correspondent who was reporting live from the edge of the runway at Toulouse in Southern France.

We immediately broke out into cheers and a spontaneous round of applause, looking on in amazement as the roar of 4 giant Rolls Royce Olympus engines came alive and lifted this incredible piece of advanced engineering into the skies, shimmering through the heat haze and looking more like a fast jet fighter rather than a civil airliner, as she reached for the skies.

The date was 2nd March 1969 and the BAC / Aerospatiale joint British and French designed aircraft known as Concorde had just flown for the very first time.

I had no idea then that I would become so fascinated with this aeroplane in the years ahead. Indeed, some 30+ years later I would actually be responsible for acquiring one.

Back in ‘69 I had been an aviation enthusiast (Plane Spotter) for several years and like many boys of my age I frequented the Terraces at Ringway, by bus or pushbike, as often I could.  Whilst aircraft movements were few and far between compared to later years, the excitement of seeing a new aircraft or airline visit Ringway for the very first time was one which would without doubt bring a smile to my face.  I had a great  sense of achievement as I underlined the registration in my Civil Aircraft Markings book or took a picture, which I later developed in my home photo lab – a piece of hardboard placed over the bath!

We were coming to the end of the sixties.  The smoky and charismatic piston engined airliners were slowly but surely being replaced by noisy jets.  Fast and Loud was the name of the game!  OK, they still produced plenty of smoke, but the pure jet engine was the future of air transport and Concorde was going to be the leader of the pack.

The “talk of the terraces” was all about Concorde.  Who had seen the pictures live on TV?  Would it ever come to Manchester?  Should it be spelt with a “d” or an “e”?  When was the British one going to fly?  Would it be at Farnborough Airshow?  What about Woodford – surely not?

At the time our State owned airline, British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC), had already placed an initial order for 7 Concordes.  They were to be registered G-BOAA to G-BOAG.  For the registration collector the Concordes became something special as the first “out of sequence” airliners to be placed on the British Aircraft Register.  Even the first prototype Concorde was allocated the registration G-BSST (Great Britain Super Sonic Transport).  But amongst those other Concordes allocated initially to BOAC and later becoming British Airways, one aircraft clearly stood out.  G-BOAC whose registration actually carried the letters of the airline (BOAC) within the aircraft registration. Naturally, this aircraft was to become the “Flagship of the Flagship Fleet”, used whenever possible on trade missions to “fly the flag” for British industry or perhaps carry our senior Royals on Overseas visits.

On a very personal basis, the Concorde G-BOAC also became my “favourite” aircraft and I guess gave me a huge sense of pride each time I saw her departing Heathrow or operating into Manchester.    

As the years went by the Concorde story unfolded: the trials, the tribulations, the politics, the countless records being broken and a desire by almost every person on the planet to fly on her!

All of these stories have been very well documented elsewhere and still make fascinating reading today. However, how on earth did a Concorde, indeed, not just any Concorde but the “Flagship of the Flagship fleet” G-BOAC end up being on permanent display at Manchester Airport?

Well, that young boy who witnessed Concorde depart for the very first time remained passionate about aeroplanes and of course Concorde.

Some 34 years later…

10th April 2003

I was sat in my office (Airfield General Manager – Manchester Airport) deep into budget planning for the coming year when our department Graduate Trainee, Steve Mellor, came rushing through the door.  “Have you heard the news about Concorde?”  “What news, I said?” looking puzzled at Steve thinking this better be important!!

“British Airways and Air France have just jointly announced that they are to permanently withdraw Concorde from their fleets at the end of October and they are saying that they will never fly again”.  “Wow!” or words to that affect I said.  Knowing that the real reason that Steve wanted to tell me this was that one of our Business areas at the time was the Aviation Viewing Park (AVP). Something myself and the Airfield Team had taken a lot of pride in creating and were actively looking for more aircraft exhibits having successfully obtained the Avro RJX for display (the last British Civil airliner to roll off the production lines not only at Woodford but in the UK).  “Thanks for that Steve, looks like we better put pen to paper?  Could you find out a contact for me at BA and I’ll try and get something off today”.

By 5 o’clock that evening I had received the “OK, why not” from the CEO and sent a detailed letter to British Airways on behalf of  Manchester Airport.  Our interest in acquiring a Concorde had duly been expressed.

Unfortunately, after our initial excitement, the days and weeks went by and we heard nothing from BA.  However, lots of rumours were circulating that every Tom, Dick and Harry from Museums, Airports and wealthy individuals from all over the world had written similar letters to mine.  Hope was beginning to fade and the Airfield Ops team began to think that our letter had gone to the bottom of the pile, or worse still, lost in the thousands of applications?

Then, one morning whilst sat in a Team meeting in the office, Beryl, my PA “buzzed me” on the intercom saying “ I’ve got a man from BA at Heathrow on the phone who wants to speak with you quite urgently about Concorde, should I put him through?  “Oh, yes please Beryl” says I, trying to remain calm, professional and not show my real excitement underneath!

 The man from BA then explained:- they had received an extraordinary number of applications for a Concorde and as such an apology was given for the late response. However, they had entered into a comprehensive selection process during which they had thinned the applicants down to a final 20 (for 7 Concordes).  He then asked a rather critical question along the lines of “are Manchester still interested?” I said “we most certainly are” to which I got a very reserved “oh, that’s good” in response.

The race is on!

“So, we would now like you to proceed to the next phase…. we are going to ask all of the final 20 applicants to put a presentation together as to why you think you should have a Concorde and what would you actually do with her?”  “Quite simply, why should we give a Concorde to Manchester?”   “We will set a mutually convenient date in about a month’s time and you will come down to London and deliver your presentation.  Based on this the BA Board will make a decision”.

I remember asking who the competition was?  But was told that he couldn’t say.  Which was a shame, albeit the answer I expected!  With that the call ended and the work truly began.

Our Management Team Meeting took on a new Agenda item and went on late into that evening.  My super enthusiastic OPS team truly embraced the “Get Concorde!” project. Suffice to say the flip chart was well used and we concluded with what we hoped was a pretty robust plan...It was going to be a busy few weeks! 

One of the first jobs of course was to gain approval from the Airport Board as potentially significant investment was going to be made.  A sound business case had to be made.  Whilst enthusiasm and passion for the project was high, that alone would not provide a viable return?

All members of the Airfield Management Team were very familiar with this type of work, although to be honest it was usually pulling a case together to justify a new Apron, Taxiway, Fire Engines or ATC Equipment… I remember well the Airfield Policy and Planning Manager, Debbie Riley, saying that of all the business cases she and the Team had compiled she never thought she would be writing one to justify acquiring a Concorde!  Mmmm, not something many people do every day I guess?  The Concorde Business Case was duly written and then successfully tested by independent financial consultants.

Basically, there would be a number of revenue streams:- Public visitors, Educational visits (schools / colleges), and Corporate events.  The aircraft would be housed in a purpose built hangar during the winter and brought out for special “photo days” in the Summer.

Revenue would also come from hire of the hangar for special events, conferences and even weddings.  In fact if things went really well it could become a 7 day a week operation with events also taking place at night?

In terms of expenditure:- well, we already had the Aviation Viewing Park (somewhere to exhibit her) which was slowly but surely becoming a valuable asset.  We had just acquired our first aircraft – The Avro RJX and had already won awards for its display. We would use a similar Runway concept which was now tried and tested and simply build the hangar around it.  There would be lights, heating, office space and toilets required for the hangar.  With respect to staffing, a successful Tour Guide operation had already been in place for years at the airport.  Anyone want to be a Concorde Guide?  You bet!

We had been advised that the Concorde would remain under the ownership of BA but we (Manchester Airport) would be responsible for its upkeep and maintenance.  So whilst we had to commit financially to the project our figures showed a healthy return in just 5 years.

It sailed past (or should that be flew past) the Airport Management Team and was then presented to the Airport Board.

Fortunately, the Airport Board gave their unanimous approval and the next step was to reach out to gain the support of external organisations from the North West on the basis that we would use Concorde both as an Educational exhibit but also as a catalyst to bring in Tourism and business to the region… and yes why not via the airport?

Manchester and Salford Universities were quick to support the project (in writing) as were local schools and colleges.  The Museum of Science and Industry jumped on board with us, as did Marketing Manchester and the City Council.  Local industry including several aerospace partners, BAE Systems (Avro) and many smaller Engineering companies were all only too happy to show their support.  Wherever we went, we found the magical attraction of Concorde kept shining through.

We also wanted to emphasise the Manchester Connection, as such research quickly demonstrated that Concorde had operated more times out of Manchester than any other UK Airfield except Heathrow.  Special “Supersonic” charter flights round the Bay of Biscay or to Barbados had taken place from and to Manchester over the years.

Manchester was designated as Concordes primary diversion airfield if Heathrow became unavailable due to adverse weather.  The helping hand in its hour of need had been accepted on many occasions.  The airport was the first in the World to develop special Concorde Procedures in conjunction with the Community.  Not only did this involve special noise abatement procedures for the Concorde crews but also advertising in advance to the airports neighbours whenever Concorde would be planning a visit.  The purpose of this was that the local residents would be ready to expect a louder than normal noise on that day – it worked as noise complaints dropped to almost zero!!  In fact we would always get more compliments than complaints as people just wanted to see it!

Throughout its operational life Concorde had visited Manchester many times but on each visit it was made very welcome by the staff and public.  To say it was  “A crowd puller” is an understatement.  The Spectator Terraces were always filled to the brim and any available viewing point around the airport would always be fully occupied on a Concorde day.

 The reason we emphasised this in our proposal was to clearly demonstrate the interest in Concorde from the people of North West England.  In fact it was as strong today as it was when it first flew.  Manchester Airport had even incorporated the shape of Concorde into its own logo!

So we had the Airport on board, we had business on board, we had educational establishments and museums on board and we had politicians on board – all backed up with interesting facts, figures and a solid business case.  Next, came two critical players – The public and British Airways (Manchester).  Through The Aviation Society (TAS), a petition of support was launched and quickly gained several thousand signatures as members of TAS volunteered each weekend to collect signatures from visitors and passengers at the airport.

Next, it may seem strange now, but at the time British Airways had a very active base at Manchester Airport offering both Long Haul and European routes.  The base was operated as a separate commercial division of BA, whom after a chat or two, over a coffee confirmed that they could and would support the Manchester Airport bid.  After all we were used to working in partnership with them on route development and we had just opened a new Terminal (3) primarily for British Airways.

 Time to put your best suit on

So, that month quickly passed by.  The homework had been completed and a presentation duly formatted.  Before I knew it, I was sat on my own, on a plane with my laptop and presentation heading down to Heathrow.  The day was one of those murky low cloud base mornings.  CAT III operations were in force and as a consequence there were holding delays and even diversions.  Just as if I didn’t have enough to think about!!

As it happened I’d given myself plenty of time.  Although the B757 landed a little later than scheduled, I arrived on time at the BA Board room at Waterside – the BA HQ.

It really was an intense interview with nothing given away.  Yes, I thought the presentation went well from my side and I was able to answer all the questions.  (As you can imagine we had undertaken several “dry runs” back at base – in fact I’m sure Steve, our Graduate Trainee, quite enjoyed asking his GM difficult questions!).

One of the key selling points of our bid was that we could of course take “immediate delivery”.  The funding was guaranteed by the Airport Board and we already had a Runway capable of accepting Concorde.  I had decided to emphasise this on the basis that we thought our competitors may struggle in these areas.  In fact I said “Should you wish the aeroplane could literally be flown into Manchester on retirement day, as such, we could accept it tomorrow!”  Whoops, I thought… hope I didn’t go too far with that remark?  Even though it did bring a few smiles from the panel.

At the end of a very intensive 2 hours we all shook hands and I left with the famous words “Thank you, we will be in touch” echoing in my ears.

On arrival back at Manchester for some reason everyone wanted to speak with me?  “How did you get on?”… ”OK, it seemed to go down well, but I don’t honestly know?” was my truthful response.  I’d been given no encouraging signs whatsoever, it was all very, very formal.  Yes, without doubt I’d been put through my paces and I still hadn’t  got a clue who the competition was?  There wasn’t even anyone else in the waiting room.

As the days and weeks went by with no word back from BA our hopes and dreams began to fade.  Ah well we’d given it our best shot I guess?

Things in the office had got pretty well back to normal “managing the Airfield” and dealing with the weekly crisis which inevitably arrive on a Friday afternoon.  Then the telephone rang again.  Beryl, introduced him again as Mr British Airways which had by now become something of an in office joke.  “Aah Good afternoon Peter, how are you?”  “I’m very well I retorted.  Thinking what was coming next?… The words which followed are ones which I will never forget…

“Peter, if I were to offer you a Concorde, which one would you like?  Moments pause whilst Peter picks himself up off the floor!!  I didn’t need asking twice… I opened my mouth and the words “Alpha Charlie” came out at twice the speed of sound.  Good choice said Mr British Airways…. CONGRATULATIONS… she’s YOURS!!  At that point I wanted to run to the top of the ATC Tower and shout out to the world.  Yes!

Shssh..

Alas, that was not to be…. “Unfortunately, Peter, we want you to come down to Heathrow early next week, sign a Confidentiality agreement and a formal loan contract.  I’m afraid I must ask you not to tell anyone until after our own Team have completed the process and made a formal announcement at a Press Conference.  This will be held before the end of October.  You may of course inform the MD, CEO and Chairman of the Airport Board.  However, should the news creep out you would be in breach of our contractual agreement which may then become void”.  “The loan agreement will not come into effect until we have made the formal announcement”.  This was serious.

But, wait a minute... was this really happening?  I’ve just been offered the Flagship Concorde.  G-BOAC is coming to Manchester… but I cant tell anyone!!

Mr British Airways then continued.  “I just wanted to say the Manchester presentation was excellent – the best!”  We thanked each other and I put the phone down.  At that point Beryl (my PA), shot through into my office, quickly  followed by Debbie (Policy and Planning Manager) followed by Steve (Graduate Trainee).  “Well?” They almost all said in unison…. ”Well”, I said “we are still in the race and BA are going to make an announcement before the end of the month”.  I really wanted to say more.  At that point I asked Beryl to make an appointment for me to brief the MD and Group CEO today if pos and book a ticket for me to fly down to Heathrow next Tuesday.  This was done and the wheels were set in motion.  But keeping this one quiet was going to be a hard one.

The following week I was back at Waterside and welcomed to a totally different atmosphere.  Champagne and lunch was the order of the day and the official contracts were signed – where else, but on the wing of a large model of Concorde G-BOAC.

In the weeks that followed, if I had a penny for the number of times I was asked “Have you any news?” I’d be a very wealthy man.

BA then made an announcement.  But not the one we had hoped for… They were going to undertake a “Farewell Tour” of Britain with Concorde during the week before its retirement.  Tickets would be offered to their staff, special customers and the general public via a draw.

Manchester was one of the Concorde destinations included on the Tour.  However, the clock was ticking and the pressure was intensifying for BA to break the news.  Everyone wanted to know where the Concorde fleet was going to retire.

All the airports and BA were advertising the flights as “The Farewell Tour” which enabled the public to come and say “Bye, and thanks for the memories” to Concorde.  However, this was a bit tricky for “the few who knew”.  So, we agreed with BA that for Manchester we would say that the flight from Manchester would be the very last Concorde departure from the airport, but we hoped that it would not be the very last arrival.  A very clever PR spin!

And so on Wednesday 22nd October 2003 Concorde G-BOAG touched down on Runway 06L at Manchester on its Farewell tour.  As usual it brought the airport to a standstill and the great British public had turned out in their thousands.  The AVP, Multi Story Car Parks and every spare piece of land with a view of the Airfield was occupied.  Concorde Alpha Golf was placed on static display for a short time outside the Aviation Viewing Park (now the RVP) prior to her being made ready for the final Concorde departure from Manchester.

Just after lunch those glorious Rolls Royce jet engines were ignited for the delight of the Manchester crowds for the very last time. This really was the last flight of Concorde from Manchester. She roared down Runway 06 Left and took to the skies. I’m sure I heard Raymond Baxter’s commentary “She fly’s” as my head was pushed back into the dark blue leather seat.  Yes,…I had been given a ticket (but don’t tell anyone).  This was to be a special flight in more ways than one.

As we reached our cruising level passing through the sound barrier and headed off at twice the speed of sound towards the Atlantic.  Our Captain came over the PA with a special announcement.  “In a few minutes time ladies and gentlemen, we will be joined by the evening New York – Heathrow Concorde in an attempt to perform the first, and only, Concorde parallel landing at Heathrow.  It’s our intention to remain in formation throughout the decent all the way down to Heathrow.  Next came those wonderful words – those of you on the right hand side of the aeroplane can now see Concorde from Concorde!

In no time at all this very special flight had come to an end.  It was back on a sedate 757 to Manchester and time to start preparing for what was happening next.  The following week was going to be the big one.

This was the week of Concordes retirement.  Yet still no public announcement had been made.  However, the focus of the press was on Heathrow where all the Concorde’s were to land on their final flights into the airport… landing one after each other.  I was fortunate enough to attend the celebrations as a guest of BA.  In fact it was at that reception where I was offered the Trident 3 “Zulu Kilo”… but that’s another story.

Got her!

BA then advised that they would be holding a major Press Conference on Thursday 30th October.  At the conference (planned for 10 am) they would advise where the Concorde fleet would be going.  Manchester Airport had to arrange a similar conference at 10.15.  I think the balloons and “Got her” banners probably gave the game away as the press assembled at Manchester?  However, the news was finally out with one little surprise.  BA had taken me at my word.  The Flagship of the Flagship Fleet ,Concorde Alpha Charlie was going to Manchester and it was going tomorrow!

What???  The plans we had made for the “Farewell Tour” were quickly dusted down and reactivated.  Friday 31st October was going to be a very special day in the history of Manchester Airport and it was.

The crowds once again came in their thousands, not only to see the very last Concorde arrival at the airport but to welcome Alpha Charlie to its new home.

And so, Alpha Charlie touched down on Runway 06 Left.  This was not only a last flight into Manchester but also the last flight ever of an iconic aircraft.  I remember wiping a tear from my eye as she taxied on to Stand 1, passing through a very respectable Fire Service water canon salute.

After a few precious moments on stand, Alpha Charlies engines were shut down for the very last time.  Welcome home Alpha Charlie.

Mike Bannister the Concorde Fleet Chief Pilot left the Flight deck, but not before  signing the Flight deck door with the rest of the crew. He walked down the steps and duly presented myself on behalf of Manchester Airport with the official aircraft documentation.

And that, as they say…. is how to catch a Concorde!

Epilogue

I left Manchester Airport in 2005 to form an International Aviation Consultancy and Training company (Airport Solutions Ltd) with Debbie Riley.

Beryl retired, but had very happy memories of her time with the Airfield team (and knew how to keep a secret!).

Steve was a brilliant graduate trainee and went on to become an Airbus A330 pilot with Thomas Cook. I met him recently and we reminisced about catching Concorde.. what else? 

Alpha Charlie now resides in her purpose built hangar, sadly the plan to bring her out in Summer didn’t quite materialise.  But the revenue targets were well and truly achieved…well before the 5 years!

Would you believe she’s still pulling in the crowds.  In fact more people visit her today than they did in the years immediately after her arrival at Manchester.    

Finally, Raymond Baxter has a lot to answer for!

By Peter Hampson