The Concorde was more than 6 tons above MTOW for the conditions on the runway at the time. It was a ton over its structural weight limit. If it had been at a correct weight for conditions it would have been off the runway long before reaching the point where the piece of metal was. It was dangerously close to an aft CG configuration as it began its takeoff roll and once fuel began pouring out of the port wing tank it was rapidly becoming uncontrollable. Many things lined up that day to doom the Concorde, but the overweight condition was the first and foremost thing that led to the rest. The metal strip, the ruptured and exploding tire, and the damaged wing tank and engine #1 were all contributing factors but would not have doomed a Concorde at proper takeoff weight. Add the extra drag on the left main gear due to improper servicing by Air France (the first time they had ever done that job at Toulouse) and the engine ingestion of metal fragments from a runway light fixture it struck on takeoff roll, as well as rotating at 11 knots below recommended Vr speed for conditions and you’re nearing the limits of survivability. But once they pulled power to a still working engine #2 during a critical period where the manual expressly forbids it, it was all too much.

Saying that a piece of metal that fell off of another aircraft brought down the Concorde is just not true.

I’m not sure what Luftwaffe aircraft had 5 bottles in a single rack like that. These bottles weren’t 1 per man, I believe some Bf-109s had 2 bottles in each wing for a total of 4, although I’m not sure if they were the same size as yours. What is the approximate size of your bottle? It’s probably from at least a 2 man crew (Ju-87, Bf-110?) or larger, and it’s possible that this rack of 5 (and possibly more) was in one wing and an equal amount were in the other wing or elsewhere in the aircraft. As Ian said, start with the manufacture and date codes around the neck of the bottles and go from there.

Here is a link to one of the cleanest sauerstofflasche I’ve seen, manufactured in 1940 and with legible codes you can use for comparison.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/WW2-German-Luftwaffe-Sauerstofflasche-Oxygen-Bottle-Ju87-Do17-He111-etc-/390870409781?hash=item5b01b12235

Mike J, I believe you are correct about the A6M3 at Legend Flyers, I was just reading about it last night. It appears they’ve decided to go with a running P&W R1830 instead of the incomplete Sakae that they had, so that will probably speed up the process. Here’s the restoration update.

http://www.warbirdsnews.com/warbirds-news/legend-flyers-restoration-update.html

The picture I posted is a P-51D of the 78th Fighter Squadron, 15th Fighter Group on Iwo Jima in March of 1945. They flew the P-51D until October 1946. They never flew the P-51 again. They were inactive from October 16th, 1946 until November 1952 when they became the 78th FIS flying the F-86. The picture shows a metal construction drop tank with a vertical seam in use during wartime.

The glue impregnated kraft paper tanks didn’t have large exposed seams like the metal ones due to the difference in design and construction materials. They were filled (108 gal.) just before takeoff and even if you had an early abort you could not land with them, they were 1 time use only. If brought back they would usually be jettisoned in a designated area prior to landing. On most missions they were usually dropped over enemy territory, and their purpose was to deny the enemy the much needed metal. Wartime production was estimated to be over 13,000 so that would save a great deal of metal and like the Mosquito it didn’t require skilled metal workers who were in high demand.

The B-29 flight manual I have lists “Surface Locks” under the “Flight Controls” section. Looks like it is located on the center pedestal. I guess the B-50D would be the same or similar.

Not what side it is on. What size is it? What are the dimensions of the red flange in inches or centimeters?

That doesn’t look like any Bonanza parts or wreckage I’ve ever seen, so I think you’ve got something else there. I also think your bolt is pretty generic and not necessarily indicative of a specific type.

Allaero lists NAS6304-7 as “BOLT, HEX HD” and “This part is used on the following aircraft: Bombardier Challenger 300”, so it’s a fairly common part still in use in modern aircraft. Good luck on your search.