Concorde – the Sky has no Limits
Hydraulics Online makes hydraulic engineering history – powering droop nose revival across three iconic UK aircraft
Concorde Hydraulics – Aviation Icon, Brought Back to Life
Concorde remains one of the most iconic aircraft in aviation history – a symbol of speed, innovation, and international collaboration. That’s why we were honoured to be selected as the hydraulics solutions partner for Heritage Concorde, supporting a truly special British-French restoration effort.
To date, Hydraulics Online has proudly delivered bespoke Concorde hydraulics systems for the restoration of the legendary droop nose on:
- Concorde G-AXDN at the Imperial War Museum Duxford
- Concorde G-BBDG at Brooklands Museum, Surrey
- Concorde G-BOAC at the Manchester Airport Runway Visitor Park
These projects have brought movement back to Concorde’s most distinctive feature – allowing visitors to experience the aircraft’s engineering brilliance for generations to come.
Learn more about Concorde and each of our collaborative design projects here…
The Concorde Story
Concorde, the world’s first commercial supersonic airliner, entered service in 1976 and flew until 2003 – becoming a global icon of speed and engineering.
To manage its steep take-off and landing angles, Concorde featured a hydraulically operated droop nose that lowered to give pilots better runway visibility. This innovation remains one of the most distinctive examples of Concorde hydraulics in action.
Concorde G-AXDN
To enhance the display of Concorde 101 G-AXDN at the Imperial War Museum Duxford, Heritage Concorde proposed restoring her hydraulic-powered droop nose – the first UK Concorde to do so since 2003.
With systems dormant since 1977, Hydraulics Online was invited to help lead the revival through Project Salute, breathing life back into this engineering icon.
Concorde G-BBDG
Known as “Delta Golf,” this British pre-production Concorde helped finalise the aircraft’s design and secure certification for passenger service.
Now on display at Brooklands Museum, she features a fully restored droop nose and visor – powered by a second, custom-built-for-Concorde hydraulics system from Hydraulics Online.
Concorde G-BOAC
“Alpha Charlie,” based at Manchester Airport’s Runway Visitor Park, became the third UK Concorde with a restored moving nose and visor – expertly engineered by our Cheshire-based team and Heritage Concorde.
The project showcased precision Concorde hydraulics and was unveiled during Concorde’s golden jubilee on 2nd March 2019 – marking 50 years since her first flight which took off from Toulouse at 13:30 GMT on 2nd March 1969.
It’s all about YOU. Whether it’s a small one-off job, or an enduring relationship delivering complex hydraulic services, we want you to feel delighted that you have found us. How can we help?
Read more about our work with Concorde and beyond…
Under the Wings of Concorde G-BOAC
March 2nd, 2019 marked the 50th anniversary of the first Concorde flight taking off from Toulouse in France in 1969. It was a day that thousands of Concorde enthusiasts had eagerly awaited, and some of our team were lucky enough to attend.
Concorde Video Collection
Our work with the Heritage Concorde team has allowed us to build a collection of videos and photographs documenting these iconic aircraft; from the restoration process to cockpit views of the droop-noses in action!
