The only way to fly...

By Peter Gould
BBC News Online correspondent

Concorde flies so high the sky is a deeper shade of blue

Sipping champagne at 60,000 feet (18,288 meters) travelling faster than the bullet from a gun, faster than the sun.

For those with the money, and that usually means tycoons and pop stars, Concorde is the only way to fly.

But even those of us who normally travel at the back of a jumbo jet will feel sad at the retirement of the supersonic airliner.

I think wistfully of the time I briefly rubbed shoulders with the international jet set, zipping from London to New York in three and a half hours.

I hasten to add that I am not rich and I have never enjoyed a lavish expense account life style.

My Concorde experience came more than 20 years ago, when British Airways was promoting its services to North America.

Caviar

The invitation came out of the blue. Would I like to join a select group of journalists on a round trip to New York on Concorde?

C is for Concorde, caviar...and champagne

I said I thought I could find the time.

So a few days later I found myself at Heathrow, in the exclusive Concorde lounge, nibbling caviar canapés and sipping the first of several glasses of champagne.

People tell you that Concorde is really a bit cramped. True, it is a bit like being in a very long, thin tube. There are just two seats on either side of the single aisle.

After the expanses of a jumbo jet, it does seem quite cosy.

The first difference you notice is on take off. Concorde feels more like a fighter plane than an airliner...the surge of acceleration pushes you back into your seat as the jet roars into the sky.

Exclusive

Out over the Atlantic, where the sonic boom will be heard only by fishermen, the captain announces the transition to supersonic flight.

An exclusive club...the Queen visits the flight deck

A small push from Concorde's four engines and the illuminated numbers on the display panel at the front of the cabin flick past the magic Mach 1.

The plane continues to accelerate. Within minutes, you are flying at twice the speed of sound.

Time to check out the other passengers. The well cut suits and designer dresses of the Concorde crowd can make lesser beings feel a little shabby.

The price of the ticket means you are joining a pretty exclusive club. It is a bit like an invitation to the board room, or being given a back stage pass.

On my flight to New York, I spotted Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees. We had a pleasant chat as he enthused about the convenience of Concorde for the transatlantic rock star.

He never once asked how I had managed to get onto the flight.

Unique

While Concorde became a limo in the sky for status conscious celebrities, the service depended on attracting well-heeled corporate executives.

Concorde pilot Mike Bannister in the narrow cabin

For them, the justification for the high ticket prices was the saving in time.

Taking off from London after breakfast, the supersonic Atlantic crossing means you can arrive in New York in time for a second breakfast.

Crossing the ocean faster than the sun gets you into the Big Apple in time for a full day of meetings in Manhattan.

Unfortunately for BA, at this time of corporate cutbacks, not enough executives are now prepared to pay the premium for that advantage.

On my trip, however, I was just enjoying a unique aviation experience.

Crouched on the flight deck behind the pilots, the view as we approached the eastern seaboard of the United States was stunning.

Concorde flies high enough for you to see the curve of the Earth, and the sky is a deeper shade of blue. Up above, you can sense the black emptiness of space.

Pride

During its lifetime, the plane has endured plenty of criticism. In many ways, the surprise is that it got into service at all.

It was noisy and expensive, but it got you there in half the time

Economists said the finances of supersonic travel did not add up. And yet for many people in Britain and France, flyers and non-flyers, Concorde has been a source of national pride.

For much of the plane's operating lifetime, I have lived in west London, below the busy flight paths of Heathrow. It is the only aircraft that retains the power to make people stop and stare.

"Look, Concorde," they say, perhaps imagining what it must be like to travel in such luxury.

In truth, air travel ceased to be glamorous many years ago. The very name 'airliner' is a throwback to a time when planes had to compete with ocean vessels like the Queen Mary.

Today, the elegance of the flying boat has been replaced by the efficiency of modern jets with their high density seating and pre-packaged meals on plastic trays.

Concorde captured the imagination like few other forms of air transport, and whatever the economic arguments, I think she will be missed.

Of course, I could be biased. I was lucky enough to have the chance to fly the dream.

I think about it sometimes when I find myself in seat 52H on a jumbo jet, on some seemingly endless journey.

Ah yes, Concorde was the only way to fly...