When I first received this product for a review, and read the introduction from ITVV’s (Intelligent Television and Video Ltd.) site and the package, my first thought was, “how could they possibly make 5 hours of documentary on an aircraft interesting?” I mean, even if you are interested in aircraft, especially the Concorde, wow, 5 hours! Well,ITVV succeeded in making 5 hours of very informative video on an exceptional aircraft! Granted, it took more than a couple of days to get through it all (remember, my name, Farmboyzim=CHORES!), but I did get through it! Most of my sim experience has been with smaller, general aviation type aircraft and the medium sized jobs. I like to site see! Having been exposed to larger aircraft, through writing reviews, I find my taste is a bit mixed now!
Flying the larger aircraft is quite challenging, since some of the quality aircraft add ons that you can find out on the market are very realistic in their cockpit procedures, and, as if you didn’t have enough to do already, the jobs of co-pilot and engineer are tossed on to your to-do list for good measure! Most of these products come with comprehensive aircraft procedure manuals, some a bit more in depth than others, instructing you on just about all aspects of what you have to do from a “cold start” to parking and shut down. Even with these manuals, the task of realistically flying these aircraft can still be daunting!
The Concorde has never been one of the chosen aircraft in my “hanger” for the above reasons. I’ve checked it out a few times for some screen shots, but never any serious flying. This documentary has again sparked my interest in a different aircraft! Captain David Rowland and Senior Flight Engineer Roger Bricknell take you on an extensive tour of this history and record breaking aircraft in an informative and interesting way.
The program starts with an introduction by Capt. Rowland. He is married with two sons and lives in North Oxfordshire. After basic training he joined BA (BOAC) in 1969 and became a Co-Pilot/Navigator on VC10s. In 1976 he joined the Concorde fleet. In 1993 he became Commercial Manager Concorde, responsible to Regional General Manager, Americas for the Concorde business in British Airways, and later combined the operational and commercial management role as General Manager Concorde.In total David has over 10,000 flying hours, most of which are supersonic. In 1995 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society, and is a Member of the Royal Institute of Navigation. He is a long term member of the Duxford Aviation Society.
David and Roger start by introducing you to Concorde outside the hangar at London Heathrow. You’re taken around the outside of the aircraft and shown the many unique features that Concorde possesses. Roger gives you a detailed "Walk Around” explaining what he is looking for during his inspection. David explains the nose and visor system which you see working. You’ll learn some little known facts about the Concorde during this walk around, and you’ll find that the Concorde is truly a unique aircraft! I found the surface temperatures of the various parts of the plane during flight were interesting. I do think it would be hard to fry an egg on the surface though!
After the outside tour of the aircraft, you are taken inside the Concorde for a very informative look at systems and procedures, to include preflight, taxiing, takeoff, climb, cruise, decent, and landing. You fly a round trip from London Heathrow to New York's JFK airport. During your two flights David and Roger guide you through the systems that enable this aircraft to fly at twice the speed of sound. You are shown in detail the procedures required to achieve and cruise at 1350mph. I think if you watch this video enough times, you should have no problems understanding the basic (very basic!) concepts and procedures it takes to fly this great aircraft! Both David and Roger do a fantastic job of making a possibly “dry” subject so very interesting! Especially for the amount of time that is filled in this video! They both go over the systems and gauges in the cockpit in minute detail, with very “down to earth” explanations of what they are referring to. Here’s another thing I learned from this video, and that is fuel transfer. This is a never ending juggling act to achieve the optimum center of gravity for the aircraft during various phases of its flight. I was aware of what CG is, but flying mostly smaller aircraft, the only thing you have to worry about is passenger weight and how much luggage you are bringing along! There are many camera angles used, nine in all, so that you can see the instrument panels, and other areas of the cockpit in great detail. It was kind of neat to watch the nose and visor come up from inside the cockpit! The noise reduction was incredible! The sound quality is fantastic, utilizing the aircraft's own audio system. After landing at JFK, the crew takes the night off, and starts out early the next day for the return trip back to Heathrow.
You will join the crew for the flight briefing at JFK for the return trip to the UK and learn about the special takeoff procedure that is required from JFK's 31L runway. Almost immediately after takeoff, a climbing turn is executed to the left to avoid noise restriction areas. Again, you are treated to a very interesting narrative by both David and Roger, from the “paperwork” that needs going over in the briefing room, to other systems and procedures that were not covered in the first flight. This is the most detailed look at Concorde that has ever been produced. Special thanks to Senior First Officer Les Brodie, who I believe, was the one working in the copilot’s seat, while David and Roger chatted it up! Just kidding guys, I know that each of you has his hands full with this aircraft!
1.5 Million Supersonic Passengers
Concorde is the only supersonic passenger airliner in the world and British Airways is one of only two airlines operating this flagship of the world’s civil aviation fleet. A little more than 1.5 million passengers have flown supersonically on board British Airways seven strong Concorde fleet since they entered commercial service on January 21st 1976. Cruising at 1,350mph, twice the speed of sound, a typical transatlantic crossing takes less than three and a half hours. Concorde flies above all the weather and her passenger cabin is pressurized to a more comfortable level than on subsonic aircraft, reducing flight fatigue still further. Since entering service, British Airways Concorde’s have operated 39,600 flights. Concorde's fastest yet transatlantic crossing was on February 7th 1996, when she completed the New York to London flight in 2 hours 52 minutes and 59 seconds, over 40 minutes faster than schedule. The small number of dedicated flight crews that fly this superb aircraft are drawn from the best and most experienced that British Airways have to offer and have more supersonic flight time than any of the pilots of the world's Air Forces.
All ITVV DVD products have been digitally re-mastered. The techs at ITVV went back to the 'Rushes' (Camera Master Tapes) and completely re-mastered each program on our in-house digital edit system. This ensures the highest quality possible.
Each ITVV DVD contains Chapter Points and menus which enable you to 'jump' to your favorite point in each program. For example this program has 140 chapter points which help you to go straight to the Take-Off, ADI, Landing etc.
All ITVV DVDs are authored for 'All Regions' which enables them to be played anywhere in the World.
If you have never been interested in the Concorde, you will be after watching this documentary! If you are just starting out flying the Concorde in MSFS, this is an invaluable asset to have. It’s like a condensed (very condensed) course on how to fly the Concorde! You folks out there that enjoy flying the Concorde on a regular basis will find this a very nice addition to your collection of Flight Simulation material! Remember, we can always learn something new!
The price is not exactly inexpensive at $44.95 USD, but you will definitely get every pennies worth out of this video. It also comes in various formats, DVD, VHS, etc.
So in conclusion, I think this video was both interesting and highly informative, and I think I will be looking into getting the Concorde package and try out what I’ve learned! I’ll tell you all about it!
To check out this product and many others by ITVVclick hereto visit their site!
