Air France Flight 4590 was the Concord's only fatal accident in its 31-year history (no other commercial aircraft has matched that record). At the time, with a record of zero accidents per km traveled before the accident, the Concorde qualified as the safest airliner in the world.

Only one Concorde aircraft ever suffered a fatal crash and explosion during its 27-year operational history. On July 25, 2000, Air France Flight 4590 crashed shortly after takeoff from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport. The tragedy was triggered when the aircraft ran over a piece of titanium debris on the runway dropped by a previous flight, which caused a tire to burst. A large fragment of the tire struck the underside of the wing, sending a shockwave through the fuel tank that caused it to rupture from the inside out. The leaking fuel ignited, resulting in a massive fire that led to engine failure and the subsequent loss of control. The aircraft crashed into a hotel in Gonesse, killing all 109 people on board and four individuals on the ground. While this was the only "explosion" and crash of the supersonic jet, the immense negative publicity, combined with the high operating costs and the general slump in aviation after 9/11, ultimately led to the retirement of the entire Concorde fleet by both Air France and British Airways in 2003.