The Flight of the Concorde

How did the VW Beetle go from Hitler’s dream car to beloved hippie icon? Today, we’re sharing an episode from a new podcast, Business History. Hosts Jacob Goldstein and Robert Smith bring to life the greatest innovations, the boldest entrepreneurs and the craziest mavericks in th ...  Show more

January 25, 1908. Harry Houdini is the most famous magician in America. He’s known for his escapes – from handcuffs, boxes, jail cells, even a giant football. But the escape act is getting old, and ticket sales aren’t what they used to be. And on this day, an under-capacity audie ...  Show more

Supersonic aircraft took a giant leap forward when the French and British governments signed a treaty to join forces on designing Concorde on 29th November, 1962. Up until this point, the two countries had been developing their aircraft separately - which had already cost the Uni ...  Show more

Almost as soon as Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier in 1947, people began thinking of ways to transport passengers at supersonic speeds. However, the challenges in creating a passenger aircraft that could travel at supersonic speeds were much greater than making a fighter airc ...  Show more

The supersonic Concorde Jet erupts in flames while taking off and crashes into a nearby hotel. Air France Flight 4590 prepares for a routine flight to JFK International Airport. Everything seems normal as the plane taxis onto the runway, but disaster strikes during takeoff. Find ...  Show more

The pandemic has been very hard on commercial aviation, but most experts believe the sector will soon be growing again – fast. The BBC's Theo Leggett takes a look at what new technologies are out there. Sandra Bour Schaeffer, Chief Executive of Airbus Upnext, tells him what the a ...  Show more