Concorde╒s flight was a marvellous and immensely exciting achievement, Mr Wedgwood Benn, Minister of Technology, said yesterday.
Mr Keith Granville, managing director of BOAC, said: ╥The flight is a soaring triumph for everyone involved with the spectacular aeroplane. Britain and France have every right to feel proud of their technical cooperation.
╥But today╒s tremendous achievement is only the beginning. From today Concorde will answer the questions itself. In the months ahead, the aircraft will show the waiting world its full performance capabilities.╙
Mr Pat Burgess, the British Aircraft Corporation executive, who will sell the Concorde abroad, said he did not think the Russian supersonic plane was a ╥serious╙ danger to the Concorde╒s market. The Concorde was about five or six years ahead of any American plane.
Mr Richard Wiggs, organiser of the anti-Concorde Project when told that Concorde╒s engines could be heard nearly 20 miles away, said: ╥This is absolutely astounding. It is surprising because it is so much greater than we had expected.╙ Anyone living really near the airport would be subject to physically painful noise.
