Classic Lecture: Concorde and the Americans by Kenneth Owen FRAeS

Kenneth Owen takes us through the twists and turns of the Anglo-French campaign to persuade the Americans to allow the supersonic aircraft to land in New York. He highlights how the French Aérospatiale and British BAC used different strategies to persuade American politicians and the judiciary to accept Concorde on the transatlantic route and shows the hoops that the manufacturers had to jump though in order to overcome environmental concerns held in both Washington DC and New York. Owen begins his story by examining British attempts to get an Anglo-American supersonic project off the ground and also explores how the British and French team persuaded the FAA to give the aircraft type certification that would enable US airlines to fly the supersonic airliner. The recording includes a fascinating discussion with members of the audience, which included former politicians, civil servants and British Airways employees that were directly involved in the story. Kenneth Owen FRAeS gave his lecture to a meeting organised by the Royal Aeronautical Society’s Historical Group on 29 April 1997. The lecture is introduced by Frank Armstrong FRAeS, the recording was digitised thanks to a grant from the RAeS Foundation and the podcast was edited by Eur Ing Mike Stanberry FRAeS.