Source : http://heritageconcorde.com/?page_id=3215
G-BOAB condition today
Concorde G-BOAB known as Alpha Bravo is the last Concorde to remain at Heathrow, and she last flew on a flight from JFK to Heathrow on the 15th August 2000. The British Airways plan back in 2003 was for her to be placed on display next to the new Terminal 5 as a gateway guardian for British Airways, where she would act as a true ambassador for the company and the heritage of Concorde!
Then BA gifted Concorde G-BOAB, along with its log to BAA on 21st January 2004, which was the 28th anniversary of Concorde’s entry into service on condition that it remained at Heathrow. Following this, G-BOAB was placed on display at the airport near to Runway 26, airport workers named this area “Point Rocket” after her. She was moved from this position on the 10th May 2006, and since then has had nowhere to be properly displayed. There have been many reasons stated for this move, such as that after the Spanish company Ferrovial took over BAA, the airports new owner appeared to have lost interest in Concorde and wanted £3million per year from BA, hence BA moved her, there has also been the claim that she would be in the way of the new Airbus A380 when it landed. Another claim was that she needed to be moved due to on going maintenance and building extension work at Heathrow. But the fact is that neither BA nor BAA has made any statements concerning her move.
Since her move, she has spent most of her time behind the British Airways Engineering building, sometimes within sight and in recent times sort of hidden away. This again causing many claims that BA and BAA want to hide her from the public, a so called “out of sight, out of mind” game. This could be true following the interest bought about concerning a claim in the UK newspaper “The Times” which stated the following news article
The Times: BA may clip Concorde’s wings and sell her to Dubai
There is some corner of a foreign desert that is for ever England. Dubai already has the Queen Elizabeth 2, the world’s fastest cruise ship, and now it is bidding for Concorde, the fastest airliner.
Forty years ago tomorrow, the British version of the graceful delta-winged aircraft took to the skies on its maiden flight. The 22-minute journey made by 002 from Filton, Bristol, to Fairford, Gloucestershire, prompted an outpouring of national pride that swept aside complaints about the cost, soot and, of course, the deafening roar.
Yet the anniversary celebrations will be overshadowed for many Concorde enthusiasts by the disclosure that British Airways may betray a promise to put a Concorde on public display at Heathrow and instead cut it into pieces and ship it to the Gulf.
A Dubai-based consortium, advised by former BA Concorde crew, is planning to turn the aircraft into a tourist attraction, possibly on one of the manmade palm-shaped islands. It would be jointly marketed with the QE2, which was sold to Dubai last year to become a floating hotel.
The aircraft’s wings would have to be sliced off before it could be loaded on to a ship.
BA grounded its seven-strong Concorde fleet six years ago and gave six to museums. But it kept one, Alpha Bravo, and for the past six years hid it away behind the airline’s engineering base at the eastern end of Heathrow. Only those who know where to look will see the distinctive slender nose.
By contrast, an Air France Concorde stands proudly on a plinth outside the airline’s headquarters at Charles de Gaulle airport, Paris. Another one is preserved at the Paris Air and Space Museum by former engineers who regularly run the electronic and hydraulic systems.
BA ordered in 2003 that Concorde’s systems should be disabled. Jock Lowe, the marque’s former chief pilot, accused the airline at the time of undermining efforts to operate heritage flights.
Despite making up to £20 million profit a year from Concorde during 27 years of commercial flights, BA is refusing to help any of the groups seeking to get the aircraft back in the air. It has repeatedly rejected requests to publish a feasibility study. BA claims it showed that it would be too expensive, but it will not share the figures with the Save Concorde Group, which believes it could raise sponsorship for a return to flight. A BA spokesman said: “It is an internal document and wasn’t intended to be shared. It has commercial information in it.”
The airline has also been distancing itself from Concorde in its branding. Two years ago, BA removed a model of Concorde from a roundabout on the approach road from the M4 to Heathrow where it had been for 16 years. It has been replaced with a model of an Emirates Airbus A380 superjumbo.
Ben Lord, of the Save Concorde Group, said: “Sending it to Dubai would be a kick in the teeth for Britain’s aviation heritage. Chopping off its wings and putting it on a ship would be the final insult.”
A source close to the Dubai consortium said it would spend several million pounds restoring the aircraft’s interior, much of which was removed and used as spares on other Concordes. He said: “If any Concorde was going to return to flight, Alpha Bravo would not be the one because it did not have the safety modifications made to others after the Paris crash in 2000. It would be very well taken care of in Dubai.”
BA admitted that it was considering removing Alpha Bravo from Heathrow, but refused to comment on its discussions with the Dubai consortium.
The “Save Concorde Group” at once got to work to try and bring about an end to any chance of this move of Alpha Bravo taking place. They want her to go on display at Heathrow, which seems to be the most cost effected option to date. This move to Dubai seems to have died a death, but in 2010 a move to Bahrain was talked about. But there as also been plan put forward by the UK based “Club Concorde”. They want to place her on display on a boat on the River Thames, near to the London Eye. This would involve cutting her wings off to move her; I wouldn’t want to see this happen to another Concorde. Heritage Concorde backs the “Save Concorde Group” plan. There main area for the display of this beautiful bird is to display her on the roundabout next to Terminal 5 at Heathrow, in the same way that former Air France Concorde “Fox Fox” is displayed at Paris CDG.
This Concorde looks very good from a distance, but the reality couldn’t be further from the truth. Inside it is almost a bare shell… A lot of the interior was donated to Brooklands Museum in Surrey for the restoration of Concorde G-BBDG. Most of the cockpit dials are also on G-BBDG, and a lot of conjecture exists as to what exactly is inside G-BOAB. But Heritage Concorde has seen pictures taken in 2010 showing her to be in a horrendous state from magazines being used as ballast, to a problem with rat infestations. Her seats, carpets and overhead lockers have all gone; she is just showing bare metal inside and filled with rubbish. In reality, only the forward cabin interior was fitted into G-BBDG, so maybe one day the aft cabin of G-BOAB maybe restored, but the biggest challenge would be to actually find enough seats! BA sold and auctioned off all of their old and new seats. How did she end up in this state in the first place?
In truth, G-BOAB has not been suitable for visitors since mid 2002; it was due to get the return to flight modifications. BA had plans for a full cabin upgrade to Concorde called ‘Project Rocket’ this interior upgrade had only been part done to the flying aircraft, essentially the seats, so BA thought why not use G-BOAB to test fit the rest, which included new vacuum toilets, new galleys, new lighting, new cabin wall fitting new cabin info displays, so essentially a full cabin refit, the first since the 1990’s.
However, during the late summer, autumn of 2002, this proved to be a tough task, galleys were overweight, toilet installation, which was always a little tricky with such limited space, was even more problematic than thought. In the end, the manpower was needed from G-BOAB for the day to day operations; the manufacturers clearly had a lot more work to, so in late 2002, it was suspended. This happened at a time while Alpha Bravo’s interior was to put it mildly, was in a real mess. With the rapid chain of events that followed in early 2003 causing the retirement a few years sooner than British Airways had expected, Alpha Bravo was left untouched!
As of 2010 her future remains unsure. It would truly be wonderful if you could offer your support to the “Save Concorde Group” in their fight to keep her in her rightful place, her home for nearly 27 years, Heathrow Airport, after all Alpha Bravo’s ownership had been “gifted” to BAA on condition that the aircraft remained at Heathrow.
During a visit to Heathrow on June 6th 2010, “Save Concorde Group” and “Heritage Concorde” received a report stating that Alpha Bravo was to be return to display at the airport, they were told by an employee of BA that a new concrete base was being made for her to stand on, this report has yet to be confirmed by BA. During the evening of the 6th June 2010, SCG were taking pictures of Alpha Bravo from the public footpath, when they received rude remarks from the security staff at BA Engineering, Alpha Bravo is part of our heritage, and as a share holder in BA, I am shocked to see how this amazing aircraft, one of only 18 left in the world has been treated.
The latest concerning this beautiful Concorde, is that BA seem very interested in her future and have asked SCG to forward their ideas for a final home for Alpha Bravo. The only other plans for her would mean her being cut up in way that we saw with Alpha Alpha, so come on BA lets keep her at Heathrow, her home for over 30 years now, and uncut!
Heritage Concorde will keep you up to date with the latest information, as it comes in concerning this Concorde.
Since her move, she has spent most of her time behind the British Airways Engineering building, sometimes within sight and in recent times sort of hidden away. This again causing many claims that BA and BAA want to hide her from the public, a so called “out of sight, out of mind” game. This could be true following the interest bought about concerning a claim in the UK newspaper “The Times” which stated the following news article
The Times: BA may clip Concorde’s wings and sell her to Dubai
There is some corner of a foreign desert that is for ever England. Dubai already has the Queen Elizabeth 2, the world’s fastest cruise ship, and now it is bidding for Concorde, the fastest airliner.
Forty years ago tomorrow, the British version of the graceful delta-winged aircraft took to the skies on its maiden flight. The 22-minute journey made by 002 from Filton, Bristol, to Fairford, Gloucestershire, prompted an outpouring of national pride that swept aside complaints about the cost, soot and, of course, the deafening roar.
Yet the anniversary celebrations will be overshadowed for many Concorde enthusiasts by the disclosure that British Airways may betray a promise to put a Concorde on public display at Heathrow and instead cut it into pieces and ship it to the Gulf.
A Dubai-based consortium, advised by former BA Concorde crew, is planning to turn the aircraft into a tourist attraction, possibly on one of the manmade palm-shaped islands. It would be jointly marketed with the QE2, which was sold to Dubai last year to become a floating hotel.
The aircraft’s wings would have to be sliced off before it could be loaded on to a ship.
BA grounded its seven-strong Concorde fleet six years ago and gave six to museums. But it kept one, Alpha Bravo, and for the past six years hid it away behind the airline’s engineering base at the eastern end of Heathrow. Only those who know where to look will see the distinctive slender nose.
By contrast, an Air France Concorde stands proudly on a plinth outside the airline’s headquarters at Charles de Gaulle airport, Paris. Another one is preserved at the Paris Air and Space Museum by former engineers who regularly run the electronic and hydraulic systems.
BA ordered in 2003 that Concorde’s systems should be disabled. Jock Lowe, the marque’s former chief pilot, accused the airline at the time of undermining efforts to operate heritage flights.
Despite making up to £20 million profit a year from Concorde during 27 years of commercial flights, BA is refusing to help any of the groups seeking to get the aircraft back in the air. It has repeatedly rejected requests to publish a feasibility study. BA claims it showed that it would be too expensive, but it will not share the figures with the Save Concorde Group, which believes it could raise sponsorship for a return to flight. A BA spokesman said: “It is an internal document and wasn’t intended to be shared. It has commercial information in it.”
The airline has also been distancing itself from Concorde in its branding. Two years ago, BA removed a model of Concorde from a roundabout on the approach road from the M4 to Heathrow where it had been for 16 years. It has been replaced with a model of an Emirates Airbus A380 superjumbo.
Ben Lord, of the Save Concorde Group, said: “Sending it to Dubai would be a kick in the teeth for Britain’s aviation heritage. Chopping off its wings and putting it on a ship would be the final insult.”
A source close to the Dubai consortium said it would spend several million pounds restoring the aircraft’s interior, much of which was removed and used as spares on other Concordes. He said: “If any Concorde was going to return to flight, Alpha Bravo would not be the one because it did not have the safety modifications made to others after the Paris crash in 2000. It would be very well taken care of in Dubai.”
BA admitted that it was considering removing Alpha Bravo from Heathrow, but refused to comment on its discussions with the Dubai consortium.
The “Save Concorde Group” at once got to work to try and bring about an end to any chance of this move of Alpha Bravo taking place. They want her to go on display at Heathrow, which seems to be the most cost effected option to date. This move to Dubai seems to have died a death, but in 2010 a move to Bahrain was talked about. But there as also been plan put forward by the UK based “Club Concorde”. They want to place her on display on a boat on the River Thames, near to the London Eye. This would involve cutting her wings off to move her; I wouldn’t want to see this happen to another Concorde. Heritage Concorde backs the “Save Concorde Group” plan. There main area for the display of this beautiful bird is to display her on the roundabout next to Terminal 5 at Heathrow, in the same way that former Air France Concorde “Fox Fox” is displayed at Paris CDG.
This Concorde looks very good from a distance, but the reality couldn’t be further from the truth. Inside it is almost a bare shell… A lot of the interior was donated to Brooklands Museum in Surrey for the restoration of Concorde G-BBDG. Most of the cockpit dials are also on G-BBDG, and a lot of conjecture exists as to what exactly is inside G-BOAB. But Heritage Concorde has seen pictures taken in 2010 showing her to be in a horrendous state from magazines being used as ballast, to a problem with rat infestations. Her seats, carpets and overhead lockers have all gone; she is just showing bare metal inside and filled with rubbish. In reality, only the forward cabin interior was fitted into G-BBDG, so maybe one day the aft cabin of G-BOAB maybe restored, but the biggest challenge would be to actually find enough seats! BA sold and auctioned off all of their old and new seats. How did she end up in this state in the first place?
In truth, G-BOAB has not been suitable for visitors since mid 2002; it was due to get the return to flight modifications. BA had plans for a full cabin upgrade to Concorde called ‘Project Rocket’ this interior upgrade had only been part done to the flying aircraft, essentially the seats, so BA thought why not use G-BOAB to test fit the rest, which included new vacuum toilets, new galleys, new lighting, new cabin wall fitting new cabin info displays, so essentially a full cabin refit, the first since the 1990’s.
However, during the late summer, autumn of 2002, this proved to be a tough task, galleys were overweight, toilet installation, which was always a little tricky with such limited space, was even more problematic than thought. In the end, the manpower was needed from G-BOAB for the day to day operations; the manufacturers clearly had a lot more work to, so in late 2002, it was suspended. This happened at a time while Alpha Bravo’s interior was to put it mildly, was in a real mess. With the rapid chain of events that followed in early 2003 causing the retirement a few years sooner than British Airways had expected, Alpha Bravo was left untouched!
As of 2010 her future remains unsure. It would truly be wonderful if you could offer your support to the “Save Concorde Group” in their fight to keep her in her rightful place, her home for nearly 27 years, Heathrow Airport, after all Alpha Bravo’s ownership had been “gifted” to BAA on condition that the aircraft remained at Heathrow.
During a visit to Heathrow on June 6th 2010, “Save Concorde Group” and “Heritage Concorde” received a report stating that Alpha Bravo was to be return to display at the airport, they were told by an employee of BA that a new concrete base was being made for her to stand on, this report has yet to be confirmed by BA. During the evening of the 6th June 2010, SCG were taking pictures of Alpha Bravo from the public footpath, when they received rude remarks from the security staff at BA Engineering, Alpha Bravo is part of our heritage, and as a share holder in BA, I am shocked to see how this amazing aircraft, one of only 18 left in the world has been treated.
The latest concerning this beautiful Concorde, is that BA seem very interested in her future and have asked SCG to forward their ideas for a final home for Alpha Bravo. The only other plans for her would mean her being cut up in way that we saw with Alpha Alpha, so come on BA lets keep her at Heathrow, her home for over 30 years now, and uncut!
Heritage Concorde will keep you up to date with the latest information, as it comes in concerning this Concorde.
