G-BOAA
G-BOAA is a preserved British-built Concorde Type 1 variant 102 formerly operated by British Airways. It is Concorde production number 206 and is recorded by the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) under manufacturer serial number 100-006. The first Concorde delivered to British Airways, it operated the airline's inaugural commercial supersonic service from London Heathrow to Bahrain on 21 January 1976. The aircraft made its final flight in August 2000 and is displayed at the National Museum of Flight in East Fortune, Scotland.[1][2][3]
Identity
G-BOAA is known as Alpha Alpha, using the phonetic alphabet for the final two letters of its registration. It was the first Concorde delivered to British Airways but not the first British airline airframe to fly: production number 204, G-BOAC, made its first flight several months earlier while completing manufacturer and route-proving work.[4][5]
| Identifier | Value | Meaning |
| UK registration | G-BOAA | Principal civil registration |
| Concorde production number | 206 | Even-numbered sequence used for British-built production aircraft |
| CAA manufacturer serial number | 100-006 | Serial in the UK civil aircraft register |
The CAA describes the manufacturer as the British Aircraft Corporation and the aircraft as Concorde Type 1 Variant 102. Its record gives ICAO 24-bit address 4004B5, four Rolls-Royce Olympus 593 Mk 610-14-28 engines and maximum take-off weight of 185,070 kg.[1]
Production number 206 is supported by the programme production sequence and must not be replaced by the 216 airframe number displayed in one secondary airframe-history field. The same page gives the correct CAA serial 100-006; the conflicting identifiers illustrate why each numbering system must be checked separately.[5][4]
Construction and delivery
G-BOAA was first registered to the British Aircraft Corporation on 3 March 1974, before the completed aircraft flew. Its maiden flight took place at Filton on 5 November 1975. British Airways received the aircraft on 14 January 1976 after a delivery flight from Fairford to Heathrow; the formal handover followed the next day.[4][6]
Delivery, first commercial service and later re-registration were separate events. The aircraft arrived only one week before the planned introduction of passenger operations, making its early airline career closely associated with Concorde's commercial launch.[2]
Inaugural commercial service
On 21 January 1976, G-BOAA operated BA300 from London Heathrow to Bahrain, the first fare-paying Concorde service by British Airways. Captain Norman Todd commanded the flight. Air France began Concorde passenger operations on the same day from Paris towards Rio de Janeiro.[2][3]
The Bahrain route preceded permission for scheduled British Airways Concorde service to New York. G-BOAA subsequently operated the airline's first New York service in November 1977. The aircraft later flew scheduled transatlantic sectors, charters and ceremonial flights during almost 25 years of service.[4][7]
British Airways published a 100-seat cabin, with 40 seats forward and 60 aft. The CAA register's historic regulatory maximum-passenger value of 144 is a different field and is not evidence that G-BOAA operated with 144 installed seats.[2][1]
Braniff interchange registrations
From 1979, British Airways and Braniff International operated an interchange service linking London with Dallas/Fort Worth through Washington Dulles. British Airways crews operated the international sector; Braniff crews flew the domestic sector at subsonic speed.[8][9]
G-BOAA was re-registered G-N94AA for the British part of the arrangement and N94AA for the US domestic operation on 12 January 1979. It returned to G-BOAA on 28 July 1980.[4][1]
The CAA's current detail record gives 28 July 1980 as the G-BOAA registration date, agreeing with the airframe history. Its historical N94AA ledger row displays an end date of 28 July 1981, one year later, while simultaneously referring to transfer back to G-BOAA. Because those two CAA fields are internally inconsistent, this page uses 1980 and records the conflict rather than altering either source value.[1]
These temporary marks identify the same production aircraft 206. They do not represent additional Concordes or a conventional sale of the aircraft to Braniff.
Later service and ceremonial flights
In April 1988, G-BOAA became the first Concorde to complete the type's 12,000-flight-hour maintenance check. The airframe was returned to service after the inspection.[4]
The aircraft appeared in several commemorative formations. On 6 June 1990 it flew with a Supermarine Spitfire over the White Cliffs of Dover for the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Britain. On 1 July 1999, it flew with the RAF Red Arrows during the formal opening of the Scottish Parliament, an association reflected in its later preservation in Scotland.[4][7]
Final flight and grounding
G-BOAA's final flight was BA002 from New York JFK to Heathrow on 12 August 2000. The sector took place after the Air France Flight 4590 accident but before the UK fleet's certificates of airworthiness were suspended. G-BOAA did not fly again.[7][10]
British Airways, manufacturers and regulators subsequently developed modifications to protect Concorde fuel tanks and reduce the consequences of tyre failure. Five of the airline's aircraft returned to passenger service in 2001, but G-BOAA and G-BOAB were not selected for modification. Components from G-BOAA were used to support the returning fleet.[7][4]
The distinction matters chronologically: G-BOAA's last flight was in 2000, British Airways resumed Concorde passenger operations in 2001 and retired the type in 2003. The aircraft remained part of the historic seven-aircraft fleet throughout, despite not returning to operational status.[2]
Transport to Scotland
Moving the non-airworthy aircraft to East Fortune required dismantling rather than another flight. During 2004, the wings, tail and nose were removed at Heathrow. The fuselage travelled by road to Isleworth, was loaded onto the specialist barge Terra Marique, sailed down the Thames and north along the coast, and was brought ashore at Torness in East Lothian.[7][4]
G-BOAA arrived at the National Museum of Flight on 19 April 2004. The components were reassembled at East Fortune, and the Concorde Experience opened to the public in March 2005. The CAA de-registered the aircraft on 4 May 2004 because it had been permanently withdrawn from use.[3][11][1]
The CAA extract records 22,769 hours at 31 December 2003, while National Museums Scotland gives the more precise operational total as 22,768 hours 56 minutes. The rounded CAA value and exact museum value are compatible rather than evidence of additional post-retirement flying. The museum also records 8,064 landings and 6,842 supersonic cycles.[1][7]
Preservation and access
G-BOAA is displayed under cover in Hangar 4 at the National Museum of Flight. The museum's Concorde Experience allows visitors to board the passenger cabin and look into the cockpit. Access and opening hours can change and should be checked with the museum.[12][13]
The aircraft remains a static exhibit and is not airworthy. Reassembly for museum display, including structural work required after transport, should not be described as a return to flight condition.
Timeline
| Date | Event |
| 3 March 1974 | First registered G-BOAA to the British Aircraft Corporation |
| 5 November 1975 | First flight at Filton |
| 14 January 1976 | Delivered to British Airways |
| 21 January 1976 | Operated BA300 Heathrow–Bahrain, British Airways' first commercial Concorde service |
| November 1977 | Operated the airline's inaugural New York Concorde service |
| 12 January 1979 | Re-registered G-N94AA/N94AA for the Braniff interchange operation |
| 28 July 1980 | Re-registered G-BOAA |
| April 1988 | First Concorde to complete a 12,000-hour maintenance check |
| 6 June 1990 | Battle of Britain anniversary formation with a Spitfire |
| 1 July 1999 | Scottish Parliament opening formation with the Red Arrows |
| 12 August 2000 | Final flight, New York JFK–Heathrow as BA002 |
| 2001 | Not selected for the return-to-service modification programme |
| 19 April 2004 | Arrived at the National Museum of Flight after surface and sea transport |
| 4 May 2004 | De-registered as permanently withdrawn from use |
| March 2005 | Concorde Experience opened to the public |
Data-quality notes
Production number 206 and CAA serial
100-006are separate identifiers; a conflicting216secondary-source field is not used.Original registration, first flight, delivery and first passenger service occurred on different dates.
G-N94AAandN94AAwere temporary interchange registrations of the same airframe.The 1980 return-to-G-BOAA date is supported by the CAA detail record and an independent history; the CAA historical row's conflicting 1981 end date is preserved as a source anomaly.
The CAA regulatory maximum of 144 passengers is not substituted for British Airways' 100-seat cabin.
The final flight, de-registration, arrival at East Fortune and public opening were separate events.
Related pages
Sources
G-INFO aircraft register search — UK Civil Aviation Authority, record extract dated 28 August 2026
Material from Concorde's first commercial flight donated to the National Museum of Flight — National Museums Scotland, 20 January 2026
Concorde: the story of supersonic passenger flight — National Museums Scotland
Celebrating Concorde — British Airways
G-BOAA (206) — Heritage Concorde
Concorde Experience and Jet Age — National Museums Scotland
Image source and licence: G-BOAA in Hangar 4 — Timo Newton-Syms, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
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