40th anniversary of Concorde's first flight

The first UK-built Concorde, 002 G, made the 20-minute journey to RAF Fairford on April 9, 1969, piloted by Brian Trubshaw.

Fairford resident Doug Newton, 68, spent eight years with the testing team working on the supersonic aircraft as a safety equipment supervisor and armament technician between 1968 and 1977.

He said he has fond memories of that time.

"We were working on something that had never been done before," he said. "It was built by the best of the best. The team was like a family, we were so close."

Mr Newton said it was a poignant moment watching Concorde's final flight land at Filton, on November 26, 2003.

"I watched the first one fly out and watched the final one come in," he said. "We all had lumps in our throats. It was very emotional."

The surviving members of the original team had to make their own way to Filton for its final flight and managed to get tickets in the public seating area.

Mr Newton said many from the original team were still angry with British Airways for ignoring them. "We felt very sad that we weren't involved in any way after the blood, sweat and tears we put into that aircraft," he said.

He is adamant that Concorde remains a one-off and doubts if there will ever be another aircraft to rival it.

"My description of a Concorde is that it's a mechanical swan," he said. "There's nothing that gets anywhere near it and we'll probably never see anything like it. The airline business has had its heyday."

Mr Newton will spend today visiting the 002 craft he worked on at its resting place at the Fleet Air Arm Museum, Yeovil.

He is still in touch with many former colleagues who have get-togethers as part of the Concorde Flight Test Association every 18 months. They will be holding a reunion in the Concorde room at the Social Centre, Fairford, on September 26.