January 02, 2011, 22:21:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6155838
CliveL
,
I should have kept a diary... never did.
According to the ConcordeSST site, the roll-out was on 20 September 1971, but (according to various internet items) Aerospatiale was already formed in 1970.
Looking at the general mess, the photo you mention (see below) was several weeks, if not a few months, before the roll-out.
Look closely.. I would say even the leading edges are not in place yet.
CJ
I should have kept a diary... never did.
According to the ConcordeSST site, the roll-out was on 20 September 1971, but (according to various internet items) Aerospatiale was already formed in 1970.
Looking at the general mess, the photo you mention (see below) was several weeks, if not a few months, before the roll-out.
Look closely.. I would say even the leading edges are not in place yet.
CJ
Subjects (links are to this post in the relevant subject page so that this post can be seen in context): Aerospatiale
January 03, 2011, 21:15:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6157554
01 first flew in December 1971, 02 in January 1973, more than a year later.
So I suppose a lot of the planned improvements "came to fruition" just about then.
Apart from the new visor, 01 still looked a lot like another prototype, while 02 was externally almost indistinguishable from the production aircraft (long tail, new nozzles/thrust reversers, tail wheel, etc.).
However, from my own limited experience, as far as the cockpit layout, and systems like the AFCS, were concerned, 01 was already far closer to the production version than to the prototypes, which were still very much mid/late '60s designs.
The two prototypes were very much experimental and proof-of-concept aircraft, and it's interesting to see in how many aspects they differ from the final production aircraft.
CJ
Subjects (links are to this post in the relevant subject page so that this post can be seen in context): AFCS (Automtic Flight Control System) Visor
January 06, 2011, 20:06:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6163491
CliveL
, You wrote:
"We (BAC) were going to do the AICU development so it made sense for 101 to get the early hybrid units. [If you were cynical you might equally say that there was no way we were going to let AS have them first!]."
Is that a typo and did you mean "it made sense for 102 to get the early hybrid units."?
I think M2dude had more fun with the air intakes at the time than I had with the AFCS, although getting MAX CLIMB and MAX CRUISE to work was, to say the least, "interesting".
Christian
"We (BAC) were going to do the AICU development so it made sense for 101 to get the early hybrid units. [If you were cynical you might equally say that there was no way we were going to let AS have them first!]."
Is that a typo and did you mean "it made sense for 102 to get the early hybrid units."?
I think M2dude had more fun with the air intakes at the time than I had with the AFCS, although getting MAX CLIMB and MAX CRUISE to work was, to say the least, "interesting".
Christian
Subjects (links are to this post in the relevant subject page so that this post can be seen in context): AFCS (Automtic Flight Control System) AICU (Air Intake Control Computer) Climb Performance Intakes
January 15, 2011, 15:29:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6181430
Don't want to be 'picky', but my photograph was of AS's 201 at Toulouse on the occasion of the party to celebrate the 20th anniversary of 001's first flight. If I understand correctly, the 'Pepsi' aircraft was 213 and belonged to AF. I don't think 201 flew with that Tricolour paint scheme. Can anyone throw more light on this?
F-WTSB (201) was painted in that horrific scheme by students at Toulouse.
Since that was in 1989, and 'SB made his last flight in 1985, and was not maintained airworthy, he never flew with that colour scheme....
The 'Pepsi' aircraft was indeed F-BTSD (213), and leased from AF for the occasion.
CJ
Subjects (links are to this post in the relevant subject page so that this post can be seen in context): Air France F-BTSD F-WTSB Toulouse
January 17, 2011, 16:26:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6185383
Filton was 'taking in' RAF Brittanias for major overhaul at the time.
Reminds me of a funny tale, not Concorde-related.
Years before (mid '60s) I'd bought an ex-RAF vacuum-driven artificial horizon in one of those surplus shops in London, dated by a War Ministry label to 1939. I'd already run it once with a vacuum cleaner (oh, the vandalism the young get up to...).
Since the Brit had some vacuum-driven instruments, there was a test bench in the Filton lab for such instruments. So I brought in my ancient horizon, had it tested.... and it still met the basic specs! They made them well in those days....
CJ
Subjects (links are to this post in the relevant subject page so that this post can be seen in context): Filton
January 26, 2011, 16:56:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6204770
Subjects: None
January 26, 2011, 19:49:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6205132
Thanks,
Dude
,
I've seen her only a few times.... first when she was parked close to the "crossing", then at the location where she's now back again.
What's struck me every time was seeing the elevons "up", rather than drooping.... makes her look as if she's ready to taxy.....
CJ
I've seen her only a few times.... first when she was parked close to the "crossing", then at the location where she's now back again.
What's struck me every time was seeing the elevons "up", rather than drooping.... makes her look as if she's ready to taxy.....
CJ
Subjects (links are to this post in the relevant subject page so that this post can be seen in context): Elevons
January 28, 2011, 21:19:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6209746
Static ports are by no means unique to Concorde; all aeroplanes have them. They measure the air pressure around the aeroplane, and this value is used in various aspects of aircraft instrumentation. In particular, it is used (together with the dynamic pressure value) to display indicated air speed.
When passing Mach 1, the nose shock wave moves rearwards, and passes over the static ports.
As a result, there is a "twitch" on both the altimeter (barely visible) and on the VSI (verical speed indicator, very visible) when exceeding Mach 1.
By the way - engine bay doors; we open one on OAC for our Technical Tours (not the shorter, 'Classic', tours where there wouldn't be time) so we can show the 593 Olympus and tell our visitors about it. Those doors certainly are heavy!
People on another (French) forum were asking about the engines on G-BOAC...
Are they still all in place? Or were any dropped for display outside the aircraft?
CJ
Subjects (links are to this post in the relevant subject page so that this post can be seen in context): G-BOAC Olympus 593
January 30, 2011, 14:07:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6212703
Oh, and.. Landroger, the blank window you mentioned is that of the forward wardrobe.
Of course there was always the infamous OAF 'glitch' which threw up false ADS warnings accelerating through M1 which happened regularly during my time on the fleet and was subject to a tech log supplement. It never seemed to affect the machine in any other way. I dunno if she did this from new or it was a result of her nosejob.
Did that knock out the A/P and A/S as well?
BTW, the VSI 'twitch' is now implemented on the Brooklands simulator, but not the OAF 'glitch'....
CJ
Last edited by ChristiaanJ; 30th January 2011 at 14:16 . Reason: Confused toilet and wardrobe.....
Subjects (links are to this post in the relevant subject page so that this post can be seen in context): Brooklands Simulator
February 07, 2011, 15:21:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6229745
AZR
,
Nice one... never heard that one before.
I think it's another urban legend...
Here's the "artist impression" that may have started the legend...
Also, there was a James Bond film, where they'd hung a couple of cruise missiles under a Concorde, which did look a bit like ASMPs.
CJ
Nice one... never heard that one before.
I think it's another urban legend...
Here's the "artist impression" that may have started the legend...
Also, there was a James Bond film, where they'd hung a couple of cruise missiles under a Concorde, which did look a bit like ASMPs.
CJ
Subjects: None
February 08, 2011, 16:43:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6231980
In my case it's a pic of G-BSST, signed by colleages and friends at Fairford.
Has been hanging over my desks in France for over 35 years, and hasn't really bleached yet.... good quality colour print....
Somewhere in a trunk I have a copy (blueprint) of prototype 01 notated in both English and French.
And yes, most are annotated in both French and English, both the descriptive legends and the measurements (i.e., metric and 'imperial').
CJ
Subjects (links are to this post in the relevant subject page so that this post can be seen in context): Brooklands Fairford G-BOAC
February 09, 2011, 20:50:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6234625
CJ
Subjects: None
February 22, 2011, 18:57:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6263944
Wasn't "Blue Wave" some kind of extremely gimmicky scheme of cabin lighting, going all "blue" when passing Mach1?
And, mentioning Marilake, are you talking about the cruddy Marilake proposal to replace the cabin displays with something, again much more gimmicky, and much less legible?
I think the proposal is still on their website.
CJ
And, mentioning Marilake, are you talking about the cruddy Marilake proposal to replace the cabin displays with something, again much more gimmicky, and much less legible?
I think the proposal is still on their website.
CJ
Subjects: None
February 23, 2011, 17:12:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6266034
I'm with M2dude and the majority of those involved who thought this was an unbearably naff concept - the whole
point
of Concorde and the millions of man-hours of development was that Mach 1 was a non-event. To introduce this nonsense convinced most of us that the marketers had lost the plot regarding Concorde and its purpose.
Maybe the marketers should have done something about the protective screen of the displays.... I hate to think how many "once in a lifetime" photos were ruined by the reflection of a flash blanking out the display.
I still have my photo at M2.03, but that was the simplistic Mach cabin display in a French Concorde.... .
Originally Posted by
M2dude
The final product, which ran nice and cool abandoned nearly all of the original hardware (no more master/slave arrangement either), utilised an ARINC 429 type databus and came equipped with new plasma displays which FINALLY worked rather well. The crap commercial computer terminal was replaced by a really neat data entry panel that was fitted on the left hand centre consul that worked pretty good from day 1. FINALLY the darned system worked.
> "ARINC 429 type databus"... again I'll have to check, but I thought it was still the old RS-422 bus. I can't remember any ARINC 429 on Concorde.... but you were there much longer than me.
I was slightly involved in an effort to bring a Marilake back to life, but we were baffled by the various comm protocols.
The French Mach cabin displays were simple kludges, but they worked, and we've just got one back to life again....
CJ
Subjects: None
February 23, 2011, 22:24:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6266673
BlueWave and Marilakes
CJ
Subjects (links are to this post in the relevant subject page so that this post can be seen in context): Air France British Airways
February 24, 2011, 17:11:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6268347
Ozzy, you'll find nearly every Concorde aficionado/a has that video on a CD or on his /her hard disk....
For some unfathomable reason, that moment when Concorde climbs away from the Red Arrows, at the end of the fly-past, always leaves me with a lump in my throat.... I don't know why....
I didn't spot it in that video.
You will still find that wishful thinking among people who do not know any better....
Not only were they decommissioned, but neither are there any spares, or infrastructure, still in existence, to make such a pipedream possible.
CJ
For some unfathomable reason, that moment when Concorde climbs away from the Red Arrows, at the end of the fly-past, always leaves me with a lump in my throat.... I don't know why....
However there is a comment that suggest a flypast for the 2012 Olympics. I thought all were decommissioned so is this wishful thinking on the part of the commentator?
You will still find that wishful thinking among people who do not know any better....
Not only were they decommissioned, but neither are there any spares, or infrastructure, still in existence, to make such a pipedream possible.
CJ
Subjects: None
March 12, 2011, 14:01:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6302040
Another question...
In what order were the engines started ( preprod manual says 3,4,2,1), and why ?
CJ
In what order were the engines started ( preprod manual says 3,4,2,1), and why ?
CJ
Subjects: None
March 12, 2011, 21:29:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6302709
Quax .95
,
Thanks!
I vaguely remembered the subject had been raised before, but PPRuNe "Search" didn't help.
CJ
Thanks!
I vaguely remembered the subject had been raised before, but PPRuNe "Search" didn't help.
CJ
Subjects: None
April 03, 2011, 17:39:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6348283
...I was always reminded that the design was in the best British military design tradition
My own field was the AFCS, and one of my experiences was discovering, (quite recently) that the prototype Concorde AFCS controller had obvious family relations with the one on the VC-10 (so not military).
Logical, both were designed by Elliott.
.... and training as a gynacologist would have been handy when replacing any component! Good times.
Originally Posted by
M2dude
M2V really was great stuff though, although now it is as rare as rocking horse excrement. (Got any spare)???
Concorde always leaked as a sieve... (escept at Mach 2) and still does to this day. We collect the M2V in the drip pans, filter it, and re-use it, but a few uncontaminated drums or boxes would be very gratefully received.... never mind the "Best By" date.
CJ
Subjects (links are to this post in the relevant subject page so that this post can be seen in context): AFCS (Automtic Flight Control System)
April 18, 2011, 16:10:00 GMT
permalink Post: 6398807
I always thought "100" was the "bare" production aircraft definition, "101" and "102" were the AF and BA specs (equipment, cockpit, cabin), "103" being PanAm, etc. and I've never seen a mention of a "5100/5101/5102" definition.
Would be nice to get this sorted in my ancient brain...... thanks in advance!
CJ
Subjects (links are to this post in the relevant subject page so that this post can be seen in context): Air France British Airways