Virgin Atlantic's Effort To Save Supersonic Airliner

Some men's garbage is other men's treasures. That's why Virgin Atlantic mogul Richard Branson is reportedly considering purchasing the entire British Airways fleet of Concordes, hoping to keep the era of supersonic air travel alive. But Branson has a big job in front of him - persuading British officials to allow the transfer of aero technology.

Cheap Seats?

Branson's offer to British Airways amounts to about $1.57 for each of the Concordes. Branson's company, Virgin Group PLC, in partnership with Singapore Airlines, believes it can run the Concordes cheaper on every flight. But the key, says the billionaire flyboy, is to get the closely-guarded Concorde operating data from British Airways.

Both BA and Air France, the two airlines which operate Concorde flights, plan to ground the supersonic airliners later this year. They say the demand for three-hour transatlantic flights, complete with airline food that blows away any competition and free champagne, just isn't there in the post 9/11 environment. But Branson, ever the optimist, believes differently.

“We would need enough time to actually make it feasible,” said Virgin spokeswoman Anna Burdsall. “If we don’t receive anything from them, Richard was considering asking the government if they could do anything to intervene.” But chances of an intervention seem slimmer by the day. BA says the Concordes will head straight from the flightline to museums. BA has already been deluged by hundreds of requests from museums and collectors, all eager to have a Concorde as a centerpiece exhibit. They’re still reviewing them. “When you’ve got seven to go around, some people will be disappointed,” BA spokesman RichardGoodfellow said. “But we haven’t named names as yet.”

FMI: www.virgin-atlantic.com