Heathrow: Concorde took to the skies on October 24 for its last-ever passenger flight, sending the world's only supersonic airliner flying into the history books after 27 years of shuttling the rich and rushed across the Atlantic at twice the speed of sound.

A British Airways Concorde jet filled with celebrities moved through blasts of water - coloured red, white and blue - from three fire trucks as it taxied to the runway of New York's John F Kennedy International Airport.

Before take-off, passengers sipped champagne and ate passion fruit and kiwi sorbets while the jet's captain, Mike Bannister, gave a final speech.

Bannister, 54, who in 1977 became the youngest pilot on Concorde fleet, told his passengers, "We are going to take you to edge of space where you can see the curvature of the Earth, moving faster than a speeding bullet."

"Flying Concorde still sends a shiver down my back - even after all these years," he said later.

The end was due to come around 15:00 hours GMT (20:30 hours IST) when three BA Concordes were to roar in to land at Heathrow airport on the Western edge of London, the last of which being the invitation-only flight from New York.

That will then be that, apart from a handful of crew-only flights to take BA's remaining Concordes to their final homes in museums, although plane buffs hope one model might be kept airworthy for shows and flypasts.

Agencies