How many Concordes were flying?

Following a farewell tour around North America and the United Kingdom, British Airways and Air France retired all 20 Concordes that were built, of which 16 flew.



During its operational history from 1976 to 2003, there were 14 commercial Concordes flying for British Airways (7) and Air France (7). In total, 20 Concordes were built, but six of these were "Development" aircraft (prototypes and pre-production models) used for testing and never entered commercial passenger service. Today, in 2026, none of the Concordes are airworthy; they are all preserved in museums across the globe, including locations like the Intrepid Museum in NYC and the Museum of Flight in Seattle. The final flight of a Concorde occurred on November 26, 2003, when G-BOAF flew to its home in Bristol. While companies like Boom Supersonic are testing "Overture" jets in 2026 to bring back supersonic travel, the original "Concorde Era" remains a closed chapter of aviation history defined by those 14 iconic, needle-nosed marvels of 20th-century engineering.

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British Airways Concorde made just under 50,000 flights and flew more than 2.5m passengers supersonically.

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Only 20 of the joint Anglo-French airplane were made, and only Air France and British Airways bought the 14 that entered commercial service. Of those 20, one crashed, one was scrapped, and 17 are preserved and can be visited, or seen from very close in museums or open-air exhibitions.

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The Concorde's retirement was due to a number of factors. The supersonic aircraft was noisy and extremely expensive to operate, which restricted flight availability. The operating costs required fare pricing that was prohibitively high for many consumers.

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Such speed didn't come cheap, though: A transatlantic flight required the high-maintenance aircraft to gulp jet fuel at the rate of one ton per seat, and the average round-trip price was $12,000.

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The aircraft quickly proved itself unquestionably as it reached speeds of up to 1,354 mph. To put that into context, that is around 800 mph faster than a Boeing 747 and over 350 mph faster than the earth spins on its axis!

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Technical, financial, and regulatory hurdles make a return to the skies extremely unlikely. Concorde is an aircraft that captures the imagination and is instantly recognizable even to non-aviation fanatics.

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Boom Supersonic, the US plane manufacturer, plans to have the answer with its new Overture jet, which is set to transport customers at twice the speed of today's fastest commercial aircraft, and is regarded as the new Concorde.

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The North American X-15 may be the fastest plane in the world, with speeds at 4,520 mph and Mach 5.93. It's an experimental aircraft used and powered by NASA and USAF.

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BA never suffered a serious accident with its seven strong fleet. Concorde service was profitable by the late 1980s and if not for the economic downturn and Air France Concorde crash of 2000, may have survived to this day.

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Concorde service was profitable by the late 1980s and if not for the economic downturn and Air France Concorde crash of 2000, may have survived to this day. Concorde earned £500 million for British Airways after tax profit, this was between a loss making 1982 and a highly profitable 2000 with just seven aircraft.

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No manufacturer has yet been able to recreate the days of the Concorde, but some are trying. Denver-based Boom Supersonic is leading the pack with its faster-than-sound Overture jet, already securing over 100 orders from United Airlines, Japan Airlines, and American Airlines.

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As an effort to remain the world's best airline, Emirates decides to go all in on what they got. Today in April 1st, 2020, at 6:37pm Gulf Standard time, Emirates announced that they will be relaunching the famous supersonic jet, Concorde, into service in 2022.

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Supercharged: Concorde was the first -- and still only -- passenger aircraft that had turbojet engines with afterburners. Raw fuel was introduced into the exhaust of the plane's four engines, immediately increasing the engines' thrust by almost 20%.

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Over the Irish sea and rapidly running out of fuel the Tornado had a hard time catching up with the mighty Concorde. Over more than a hundred miles or so, 5–10 minutes the Concord could outrun every fighter.

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The short answer is no. While the Concorde was undoubtedly fast, reaching speeds of up to Mach 2.04 (1,354 mph or 2,180 km/h), it fell short of the blistering speeds of a bullet.

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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.

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