Breaking News ref G-BOAC at Manchester

Press release:
CONCORDE £1 MILLION SUPER HANGAR GETS GREEN LIGHT

Manchester Airport’s iconic Concorde is to get a new £1 million super hangar and visitor centre.

The now retired supersonic aircraft, which was the pride of the British Airways fleet and has been on display at Manchester Airport since 2003, is to get a new home designed to protect her from the elements and boost visitor numbers.

Work is due to start on the £1.1 million, 68 metre by 38 metre, glass, steel and high tech PVC structure early in Spring and is due to be completed and open to the public by the end of July.

Concorde G-BOAC is the central attraction in the 250,000 visitor a year Aviation Viewing Park at Manchester Airport and is also a licensed wedding venue where many couples have tied the knot on board the aircraft which, when she flew, was capable of twice the speed of sound.

The new development will also include a corporate hospitality suite capable of housing up to 75 delegates, an education centre for school tours, an aviation exhibition and a glass-walled visitor restaurant alongside Concorde with views of Manchester Airport’s busy runways.

Manchester Airport’s Operations Director Andrew Holl said of the announcement: “I’m delighted that work is now going to be able to start on the hangar for this important piece of aviation history.

“Concorde is very close to our hearts here at Manchester Airport and we know that her many thousands of visitors feel passionately about her care for the future. We have been working on this proposal for the last year and are all very excited that the first spade will be going in the ground in a matter of weeks.

“The hangar will not only protect Concorde for future generations to enjoy but it will also provide a great day out for the thousands of people we expect to visit in the future. We’re especially pleased as it will mean that visitors can come to the Viewing Park in all weathers, knowing that they can see our exhibits and runways without being exposed to the elements.”

The contract for the work has been awarded to The Hurst Group and the hangar is being supplied by De Boer. The construction is still subject to final planning approval by Manchester City Council.

Ends

Artist’s Impression attached supplied by DLA Graphics.

Editor’s Notes
• British Airways decommissioned their seven Concorde aircraft in April 2003.
• Manchester Airport was successful in its bid to exhibit Concorde G-BOAC at the Aviation Viewing Park and on October 31st 2003, Concorde G-BOAC took her final flight, to her new home at Manchester Airport.
• In March 2004 she was moved to a bespoke replica runway in the Aviation Viewing Park and unveiled for public display in April 2004. Over 22 million passengers can now see her as they fly in and out of the UK’s third busiest airport.
• The fleet of seven Concordes are now preserved at the following sites:
· Airbus UK, Filton Bristol, UK
· Manchester Airport, UK
· Museum of Flight, near Edinburgh, UK*
· Heathrow Airport, UK
· The Museum of Flight, Seattle, USA
· The Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum, New York, USA
· Grantley Adams Airport, Bridgetown, Barbados*
* preserved undercover

• Government approval for the production of G-BOAC was given in December 1969
• Concorde G-BOAC (affectionately known as ‘Alpha Charlie’) became the second aircraft to join the Concorde fleet when she was delivered to British Airways on 13 February 1976
• Although G-BOAC was the second Concorde to be delivered, she is considered to be the flagship of the fleet as she carries the registration plate BOAC – which were the initials of British Airways’ forerunner, British Overseas Airways Corporation, which merged with BEA (British European Airways) to form British Airways.
• All seven aircraft in the British Airways Concorde fleet visited Manchester during their 27 years in commercial service
• Concorde made 413 flights to and from Manchester Airport
• During flight Concorde could stretch between 15 and 25 centimetres due to heating of the airframe. She is painted in a specially developed white paint to accommodate these changes and to dissipate the heat generated by supersonic flight
• Concorde’s top cruising height was 60,000 ft – that’s more than 11 miles above the surface of the Earth
• Concorde could accelerate from 0-225 mph in 30 seconds. She could travel faster than the earth rotates.
• More than 2.5 million people travelled on Concorde since she started commercial passenger services in 1976
• The first flight to New York was on 22 November 1977
• On 11 August 1999 two British Airways Concordes flew in a supersonic formation to chase the total eclipse of the sun
• Concorde’s most frequent passenger, an oil company executive, clocked up almost 70 round trip transatlantic crossings a year
• Manchester Airport now offers a range of different types of guided tours on board Concorde G-BOAC – pre-booking is essential for all tours. To go on board, call 0161 489 3932 or for enquiries email [email]concorde.avp@btinternet.com[/email].