Farwell to Barbados
Friday, September 12, 2008
Our experiences with the Concorde Museum can be found here: http://beautiful-barbados.blogspot.com/2008/08/wednesday-week-one-helicopter-day.html
This is from another blog, written September 12th 2008 by Ksue44
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From http://www.travelblog.org/Central-America-Caribbean/Barbados/blog-322563.html
Day #5 - September 6th (2008)
As they say, "all good things must come to an end". I got to go to all of the places that my little heart was content to go. There was an exception to that, and it was a BIG surprise for me. I found out that the Concorde was on display in Barbados! I was excited - I had always wanted to fly on the Concorde.
British Airways Concorde G-BOAE or Alpha Echo for short, was opened to visitors on April 16, 2007.
Studies began in 1959 to design the Concorde. The plane was developed in the 1960s by the French company Aerospatiale and the British Aircraft Corporation.
In the mid 1960's the first protoype was made, and the first flight took off in 1969.
The Concorde was retired in 2003 due to costs and the crash of the Air France Concorde in July 2000.
The Concorde flew to: New York, Paris, London and Barbados. Flying from London Heathrow to Barbados would be a 4 hour flight on the Concorde. Today, that same flight is 8 hours.
An excerpt about the Concorde that intrigued me "The sun is now climbing from the west. In winter it is possible to leave London after sunset, on the evening Concorde for New York, and watch the sun rise out of the west. Flying at Mach 2 at these latitudes will cause the sun to set in the west at three times its normal rate, casting, as it does so, a vast curved shadow of the earth, up and ahead of the aircraft."
Rear of the Concorde
The wings have an interesting shape.
There are 7 British Airway Concordes on display: four in Britain, two in the United States, and one in Barbados.
When entering the Museum you are treated to an impressive video/sound presentation telling about the plane itself and giving interesting information about some of its features: It can travel at twice the speed of sound (Mack 2.00) some 1380 m.p.h. or 23 miles per minute. This is faster than a rifle bullet. Since Barbados is only 21 miles long the Concorde could have travelled the length of the island in less than one minute! The Concorde’s “home” was in the stratosphere, on the edge of space, and it travelled so fast that it heated up, expanding the metal of which it was made and actually increasing the length
When the Concorde takes off, the nose is up. When it lands, the nose is down.
The Concorde plane is really enormous, with landing wheels some four feet in diameter. Some other interesting facts about flight: the sound barrier, about 690 m.p.h., was first passed in 1947 and the first supersonic passenger plane flew 19 years later in 1976.
My favorite part: a video which simulates take off including vibration of the plane; the simulation also offers experience of the sonic boom during flight. Realism is enhanced when you are handed a “boarding pass” before “boarding” and when this is collected at the entrance to the plane by a “flight attendant”.
After you view the inside of the plane, you can have an "opportunity" to fly the Concorde on a flight simulator. It isn't as easy as it looks. I had trouble with take-off, then once airborne, the plane went straight up. I fully understand why I'm not a pilot! It was fun!
The Concorde exhibit is a great place to go, before catching your flight.
After leaving the exhibit, I caught my flight home. Interesting thing - on the flight going to Barbados, everyone was chatty, bubbly with excitement, and anxious. Returning home, the plane was quiet and faces were long. Vacationer's "remorse".
Departure lounge
These chairs were luxury!
Eating in style
This isn't like the "peanut" gallery that some of the airlines of today now offer.
Inside the cabin
The cabin is short and narrow inside.
Meal time
This is a little bit more upscale than that "Happy Meal", naturally, you'll want to have some bubbly.
Luggage conveyor belt
The luggage was a bit dated. There is very little room inside the Concorde for luggage, it isn't stored underneath the plane.
Long and narrow
The tires were about 4 feet high.
"Green" plane
This was cute!
Small
This plane was a dwarf next to the Concorde
