The Air France Concorde made its last transatlantic journey on Thursday, touching down at Dulles International Airport in the morning after a 3-hour 49-minute nostalgic trip that ultimately will see the supersonic jet dona The Concorde, perhaps the best-known gift from France since the Statue of Liberty, was once the symbol of technology and the future of air travel. Air France ended regularly scheduled Concorde flights last month, the victim of high operating costs and too few passengers. After a fatal crash in 2000 and additional security concerns post-9/11, the world’s rich and famous have turned elsewhere. British Airways will continue to fly its Concordes until October. But Thursday’s flight was the last ever to Washington. The donated Concorde was the first in Air France’s five-supersonic-jet fleet — the one that debuted Air France’s supersonic service in January 1976, and the first one to land at Dulles. ‘‘She loved the firsts,’’ said retired Concorde pilot Chemel Eduoard. ‘‘This was not an ordinary plane. She was the best of the fleet.’’Concorde flights were too expensive for ordinary travellers — costing upwards of $10,000. But they became an icon of a glamorous lifestyle and were flown by queens and presidents, diplomats and rock singers. ‘‘I’ve flown Concorde 200 times; maybe 400 times,’’ said maestro Mstislav Rostropovich, often called the world’s greatest living musician and the leader of the National Symphony Orchestra for more than 17 seasons.The significance of France’s donation to the American museum, which comes in the midst of strained relations between the two nations over the Iraq war, was evident by the emotional sendoff at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport. As the Concorde pushed away from the aging concrete of Terminal 2a, airport firefighters and ground crew stood and waved goodbye, cameras hanging around their reflective safety vests. Soon after takeoff, a French fighter jet appeared off the left side of the aircraft and escorted the Concorde as it broke the sound barrier. Afterward, the fighter turned away in a respectful farewell. The aircraft, known as F-BVFA, now will become a major part of the National Air and Space Museum’s new facility in Dulles, which is scheduled to open to the public in December. The other Concordes in the Air France and British Airways fleets are slated for donation to other museums around the world. (LATWP)
