Vidicom : The Concorde Story : Text

For almost 30 years, the Concorde has been travelling across the Atlantic: fast as a bullet, the world's only supersonic passenger plane can make it from Paris to New York in less than four hours. Ordinary jets take twice as long.

The Concorde was an icon of style, a status symbol for the rich - until, on July 25th, 2000, the futuristic dream turned into a nightmare. When Air France flight 4590 went down in a flaming inferno, 113 people lost their lives.

It was the end of an era: As passenger numbers have never recovered since the crash near Paris, the elegant aircraft is retired in 2003.

With exclusive material filmed on board and original footage from the 1950s and 60s, The Concorde Story portrays an icon of modernity - an eventful tale between triumph and tragedy, glamour and gloom. Our documentary recounts the Concorde's difficult birth: the British and French race against the Russians and their Tupolew 144. Test flights in the Antarctic and the desert. Political poker and the visionaries' long fight to make their dream come true in spite of all obstacles.

Furthermore, we visit the designers working on supersonics for the next millennium: will there ever be a worthy successor to the legendary Thundering Beauty?