GROUP : BIL 13/2B

LECTURE : SIR ZULHILMI BIN MUHAMMAD NASIR

FUNDAMENTAL OF TRANSPORT

TITLE : CONCORDE AIRCRAFT

CONCORDE ?

During departure On air

HISTORY In 1962, the British and French governments signed

an agreement to develop a supersonic transport aircraft (SST).

The plane was built jointly by British Aerospace (BAe) and Aerospatiale.

Two prototypes were built, and the first flight took place in 1969.

A total of 20 Concordes were made. The planes were flown by British Airways and Air France.

Aircraft production had flourished during World War II, many of the technologies developed for military use were adapted to make passenger aircraft faster and more powerful.

The next logical step was to develop a supersonic passenger aircraft capable of flying faster than the speed of sound.

The British government formed the Supersonic Transport Aircraft Committee in 1956 and the Bristol Aeroplane Company started work on the development of the Type 233 supersonic jet.

The French were pursuing the same goal with Sud Aviation’s Super-Caravelle.

THE NAME OF CONCORDE

The name Concorde was first used by President De Gaulle of France in 1963, and the British initially spelt it without an ‘e’ – Concord.

In 1967 Tony Benn, the minister for technology, announced that Britain would adopt the French spelling and squashed nationalistic protests by proclaiming that the ‘e’ stood for “excellence, England, Europe and entente (cordiale)

When an irate Scot wrote an angry letter demanding to know what ‘e’ represented to his country, Benn replied that it was ‘Ecosse’, the French word for Scotland.

ANATOMY OF CONCORDE

In reality the project was so complex that it took much longer and cost far more.

The radical implications of Concorde’s extraordinary speed for its weight, shape, noise and components meant that every element of its design was dramatically different from that of a conventional jet, as were the safety requirements.

Delta Wings

An early design decision was that its wings should be- A slender- Swept-back triangular shape, rather than rectangular like a Boeing 747’s, to allow Concorde to move easily through the

air at exceptionally high speed.

These triangular or ‘delta’ wings not only optimised speed by reducing drag, but provided sufficient lift for take-off and landing at subsonic speed, and enough stability during flight to eradicate the need to install horizontal stabilisers on the tail.

The droop-nose

During takeoff and landing, Concorde flew at a steep angle, with its front end tilted skyward and its tail pointing down.

If a conventional plane were in this position, its nose would block the pilots' view.

But Concorde's long, pointed nose had a hinge. As the plane took off, landed, and taxied, the pilots tilted its nose forward so that they could see the runway.

For supersonic flight, the nose was hydraulically lifted, streamlining the plane's shape and allowing it to efficiently pierce the air.

Turbojet Engines

Concorde's four turbojet engines were twice as powerful as engines on large subsonic jets.

Mounted in pairs under the wings, each engine could provide more than 38,000 lbs of thrust, accelerating the plane from 0 to 225 mph in only 30 seconds.

This afterburner system was similar to technology used today by fighter jets and the Space Shuttle. It gave Concorde's engines a fiery glow (and also made them extremely loud).

Passenger Cabin

Concorde's aerodynamic, narrow body restricted space for passengers.

British Airways planes seated only 100, while Air France planes, with a slightly roomier cabin layout, sat just 92.

Given Concorde's gas-guzzling, costly operation, you paid dearly for the chance to go supersonic.

But with a $10,000 round-trip ticket, you flew in high style—toasting your takeoff with caviar and champagne, followed by a five-course gourmet meal.

Eleven miles high, above 90 percent of Earth's atmosphere, the ride was rarely rocked by turbulence, and the view of our planet's curvature was spectacular.

Passenger Cabin

Fuel Transfer

Concorde carried roughly 31,500 gallons of fuel weighing more than 200,000 pounds, an enormous weight that, depending on the fuel's location, changed the plane's center of gravity.

A fuel-transfer system adjusted the center of gravity and helped to keep Concorde stable. Before takeoff and during acceleration to supersonic speeds, about 20 tons of fuel was moved backwards to tanks in the plane's tail and wings.

As the aircraft slowed down at the end of a flight, fuel was pumped forward to a tank near the plane's center.

WHY CONCORDE SHOULD BE STOPPED ?

Too expensive to operate

Concorde to be retired by the end of October 2003 -10/4/03 BA said that its decision had been made for commercial

reasons with passenger revenue falling steadily against a backdrop of rising maintenance costs for the aircraft.

The deterioration of business results from the transatlantic service

Both airlines have had a drop in Concorde bookings due to the downturn that is currently effecting the aviation industry

Breaking these contractual agreement is resulting in a write-off £84M in the current financial year

A tire blew out

As a Concorde was taking off, two tires on the main left landing gear blew out, and tire debris and wheel shrapnel damaged the No. 2 engine and punctured three fuel tanks. A large hole was torn in the wing.

Combustion sources are the result of a tire explosion. This statement is supported by rubber pieces weighing 4.5 kg

were found beside the track. Grounding effect on the outer surface of the fuel tank has also

been associated with tire explosion

HOW CONCORDE CRASHED ?

THE ADVANTAGE OF CONCORDE

DROOP NOSE

Can be drooped down not obstructing the pilot.

To reduce drag and achieve optimum aerodynamic efficiency.

HANDLING, SAFETY AND SUPERSONIC SPEED

Most powerful pure jet engines flying commercially

‘Reheat’ technology, which added fuel to the final stage of the engine

The extra power required for take-off and the transition to supersonic flight.

SPEED

220 knots (250mph) (compared with 165 knots for most subsonic aircraft).

1350mph - more than twice the speed of sound

"faster than the sun".

DISADVANTAGES HEATING ISSUES The hottest part of the structure of any

supersonic aircraft is the nose. The highest temperature -127 °C (Mach 2.02) The fuel as a heat sink for the heat from the air

conditioning

TEMPERATURE SHEAR Pockets of air with temperature differing sharply

from that of surrounding air. Very sensitive to air temperature.

INCREASED RADIATION EXPOSURE

Passengers received almost twice the flux of extra-terrestrial ionising radiation

High level - descended to below 47,000ft (14,000 m)

Decrease indicator indicated whether the aircraft needed to descend further and unsafe altitude.

CONCLUSION

o This is very effective transport because very faster to one point to one point .

o Have use higher technology for improvement to maintained

o Produces sound quite noisy once gave a

negative response by the public, especially customers