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Concorde

Scheduled cruise as British Airways prints it: 1,350 mph (2,160 km/h, Mach Two). A specification of 2,179 km/h is noted and not ranked.

Also known as Aérospatiale/BAC Concorde
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Top speed

Published as 1,350 mphPublished as 1,350 mphPublished as 1,350 mphPublished as 1,350 mph

Scheduled supersonic cruise published by British Airways: 1,350 mph (2,160 km/h, Mach Two), up to 60,000 ft. Not an FAI absolute speed record. Britannica prints 2,179 km/h (1,354 mph) at Mach 2.04.

OfficialBritish Airways (opens source in a new tab)

In context

  • London to New York in 2 h 34 minConstant · London to New York, 5,570 km great-circle
  • 21× a cheetah's timed top speedSourced · Cheetah, 29 m/s. Sharp 1997, mean of three timed runs over 201.2 m
  • 6.6 football fields a secondConstant · American football field, 100 yd (91.44 m)

Worked out from the sourced figure above, which stays the ranked number.

Mechanism

Why it's so fast

Concorde is air-breathing, so the engines only work if the inlets can hand them air they can use. Heat, fuel and the job the airplane was built for decide whether the speed is a dash or a cruise.

  1. The inlet

    A compressor wants subsonic air. At high speed the intake has to slow the flow, usually with shocks. The engine and the inlet are one system.

  2. A cruise with people

    Concorde had to hold the speed with passengers, not touch it once. The wing and the intakes are shaped for that long sector.

Provenance

Every measurement

Claimed, measured and official figures side by side, each with its source. The ranked figure is marked.

  1. 2,173km/h1,350mph604m/s1,173knMach1.77Ranked figure

    Scheduled supersonic cruise published by British Airways: 1,350 mph (2,160 km/h, Mach Two), up to 60,000 ft. Not an FAI absolute speed record. Britannica prints 2,179 km/h (1,354 mph) at Mach 2.04.

    Britannica prints 2,179 km/h (1,354 mph) at Mach 2.04. Heritage Concorde prints 2,179 km/h and also 1,345 mph and about 1,350 mph.

    Official
    British Airways (opens source in a new tab)

Reference

Specs

Scope
Airline cruise, not an FAI absolute
Operator figure
1,350 mph
Specification also printed
2,179 km/h
Service
1976–2003

Context

Background

This list is airliner cruise, not the FAI absolute speed record. British Airways, the operator, prints a cruising speed of 1,350 mph (2,160 km/h, Mach Two) up to 60,000 feet. That operator figure is the rank. The BBC's Concorde facts page says it cruises at around 1,350 mph and also prints Mach Two (2,150 km/h) in a summary table.

Britannica prints a maximum cruising speed of 2,179 km/h (1,354 mph), Mach 2.04. Heritage Concorde prints Mach 2.04 as 2,179 km/h and 1,345 mph, and also says about 1,350 mph. Those are tighter statements of the same cruise, not a second flight. Guinness has printed 2,124 km/h elsewhere; that lower conversion is noted and does not replace the operator's 1,350 mph. Concorde left airline service in 2003. The row is the cruise it flew, not a current timetable.

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