Club Concorde Says It Mave Have Financing To Return The Supersonic Airliner To Service

Club Concorde, which is comprised of former Concorde pilots, frequent fliers, and others that have never quite given up on the supersonic airliner, has been raising funds for a couple of projects, one of which would be returning the SST to service on a private basis.

Concorde last flew on October 24, 2003. According to the organization's website, nearly $62 million has been raised to purchase two of the retired airliners and place them on display in London and later Paris. But a more ambitious goal is to start flying the SST again, and last July, the club said that it has a business plan to purchase and operate a Concorde under "private livery."

Club Concorde says that it potentially has nearly $186 million in reserve from U.K. and other investors for future Concorde projects, and the return to flight program would be paid for by those funds. " All restoration to flight costs would be borne by Club Concorde International who would also finance the construction of maintenance / display hangars at both the French and UK bases," the club said on its website.

But the group also says that now that "money is no longer a problem ... the global Concorde fraternity must keep up the pressure" on those who have said they are in favor of the project to move forward, as "time is running out."

(Concorde pictured in file photo)

FMI: www.clubconcorde.co.uk/