Concorde - Had it's day? (Concorde)

Member Name: koduk

Product:	Concorde
Date:	04/08/00 (51 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: One of the finest aircraft ever built

Disadvantages: Safety worries that must be resolved

Oh Dear - what an incredibly tragic accident, not just for those who died, their families and friends, but for a part of the magic of human flight.

Having flown on Concorde, I can honestly say that it must be one of the greatest experiences available to anyone, regardless of their age or financial position. To think that such a wonderful machine may be coming to the end of its useful life must surely bring a tear to the eye of anyone who has been lucky enough to have travelled on one, however briefly.

The age-old problem, of course, is at what point do we consider that the safety of the passengers can no longer be guaranteed at a cost that makes the plane commercially viable. At least the latest incident, as with so many similar tragedies, has brought to the attention of the public the awareness that all safety considerations are balanced against cost. Harsh though it may be, plane crashes, like those involving cars, trains or ships, should not in themselves cause the demise of the vehicle concerned unless it can be clearly proved that they are inherently dangerous.

In the case of Concorde, while it has never before been involved in a crash with loss of life, it must now now be the job of the accident investigators to look at all aspects of the plane and review all its past history of both major and minor problems. Only then will people feel secure. My fervent hope is that the planes still in service can be proved to be safe, with whatever repairs and modifications are necessary being carried out regardless of cost.

If such a tragedy should occur again, it will probably lead to the planes being taken out of service and such a great part of our aviation heritage could never be relaced. It may be a worry to many people, but on balance I would, given another chance, love to travel on this fine aircraft again.

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