Why did Concorde have to be painted white?

Concorde had to be painted with a special highly reflective white paint so it could withstand the heat generated from supersonic travel. “The power was gained using an engine reheat, where fuel is pumped into the jet pipe and set alight to give extra thrust,” British Airways said.



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Concorde measured nearly 204ft in length and stretched between 6 and 10 inches in flight due to heating of the airframe. It was painted in a specially developed white paint to accommodate these changes and to dissipate the heat generated by supersonic flight.

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It's well-known that the stated reason the Concorde was painted predominantly white was to mitigate heating problems.

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Airplanes are very exposed to sunlight both when they are in flight and when they are parked on the ground. White paint is the best way to minimize cabin heating and prevent potential damage from solar radiation.

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It would be the fastest Shul would ever fly. But it wouldn't be the last surface-to-air missiles the SR-71 Blackbird would outrun. In fact, during more than three decades of operational service, the SR-71 Blackbird would evade nearly 4,000 missiles.

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The paint on an aircraft can weigh over 500 pounds, or the equivalent of carrying 3-4 passengers that never pay. It takes additional fuel to fly that weight around, not counting the cost of the paint job to begin with. Additionally, unpainted metal is easier to inspect during maintenance.

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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 Concorde had a maximum cruising speed of 2,179 km (1,354 miles) per hour, or Mach 2.04 (more than twice the speed of sound), allowing the aircraft to reduce the flight time between London and New York to about three hours.

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Concorde is sadly no longer flying, but it is still possible to visit some of the remaining 18 airframes, there are others not open to the public but you can still see them.

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Bathroom: The smallest room on Concorde was also a squeeze. Su Marshall, who flew on the airplane, said she was advised by a regular passenger to go before takeoff as the size made it impossible to pee once in the air.

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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.

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Delta subsidiary Song Airlines originally introduced the Pink Plane in 2005. The Pink Plane paint scheme transferred to a Boeing 767-400ER in 2010.

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