The day of the Concorde crash – level 3

25-07-2000

The development of the supersonic plane Concorde took seven years. The first test flight was in 1969. After another seven years of work, Concorde managed to get on regular flights. Concorde was able to fly twice as fast as the speed of sound.

The plane was a symbol of luxury, elegance, and speed. It was able to fly the distance between London and New York in 3 hours. It flew at an altitude of incredible 18 kilometers.

Then came the tragic day of July 25, 2000. Air France’s Concorde was preparing to fly from Paris to New York. Its tire blew during the take-off. This incident caused the fuel tank to break open, and a lot of fuel started to pour out of the plane. The fuel caught fire, and the plane crashed into a hotel near the airport. No one survived the tragedy.

Concorde flights were stopped for many months. The planes were improved and their flights were resumed for a short time. However, the interest in flights in Concorde was no longer so great, and in October 2003, the flights were stopped forever.

Difficult words: supersonic (faster than the speed of sound), altitude (the height above the sea), fuel (energy for planes and cars), resume (to start again).

What impact do you think the tragic crash of Air France's Concorde in 2000 had on the public's perception and interest in supersonic flights?

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