Great Britain recently issued these eight special stamps, presented as four horizontal se-tenant pairs, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the supersonic aircraft Concorde’s first commercial flight on 21 January 1976. Striking photography showcases the iconic aircraft’s sleek and stylish design, from its distinctive wings to the signature “droop nose”. The Concorde had a delta wing design, which required it to take off and land at a very steep, nose-high angle. In this position, a fixed, streamlined nose would have completely blocked the pilots’ view of the runway. By making the nose adjustable, pilots could lower it to see where they were going during low-speed manoeuvres. The 1st Class stamp pairs show, from top to bottom:
- Concorde flying overhead, 1985; Concorde celebrates ten years of service, 1985.
- Concorde’s first British Airways livery, 1974; Concorde’s first UK commercial flight, 1976.
- British pre-production Concorde rolled out, 1971;British pre-production Concorde in flight, 1974.
- Concorde’s last British Airways livery, 1997; Concorde’s final commercial flight, 2003.
