Tragic final words of Concorde captain before plane crashed two minutes into flight killing all on board
The captain of the doomed Concorde flight which crashed just moments after take-off uttered four tragic final words as he realised his fate.
Christian Henri Marty, 54, was at the helm of Air France Flight 4590 when chaos ensued just 77 seconds after it had left the ground.
The plane had taken off from Paris' Charles de Gaulle Airport and was supposed to be heading to New York, before tragedy struck 25 years ago today (25 July).
The incident left all 109 people onboard - 100 passengers and nine crew members - dead, while four people on the ground were also killed.
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As well as changing the aviation world forever, the crash ultimately led to the permanent grounding of all Concorde aircraft.
What was Concorde?
For a fleeting moment in time, Concorde revolutionised air travel by offering passengers a speedy and swanky trip across the Atlantic.
It was capable of flying faster than the speed of sound, cutting the journey time from London to New York to just over three hours.
The supersonic passenger airline was produced as part of a joint venture between France and the UK.
By 1969, the tailless aircraft was ready for commercial passenger use. Air France and British Airways quickly began piling travellers onto the pioneering planes.
Concorde proved a hit with people who didn't like to savour their time in the skies, as it allowed people to travel half-way across the world in one afternoon.
However, the fleet of planes was permanently grounded in 2003 after the horror Air France Flight, while rising overhead costs, dwindling passengers and delays also contributed to its demise.
What happened on Air France Flight 4590?
Moments after Air France Flight 4590 departed Charles de Gaulle Airport on 25 July, 2000, one of the Concorde's left tyres failed after striking a small piece of sheet metal.
According to investigators, this had fallen off the engine of another jet, which had taken off from the same place just five minutes earlier.
As a result, bits of rubber ended up flying into the plane's fuel tanks, resulting in what the Federal Aviation Administration have described as a 'massive fuel leak'.
This sparked a fire - all while Air France Flight 4590 continued to soar into the air.
The Concorde's engines then began to malfunction and after reaching an altitude of approximately 200 feet, it was unable to climb any higher.
Despite the best efforts of those in the cockpit, the plane then stalled and crashed into the Hôtelissimo Les Relais Bleus Hotel.
All 109 people on board were killed, while four others who worked at the hotel were also victims of the devastating crash. At least a dozen others were also injured on the ground.
What were the captain's final words?
The terrifying final moments in the cockpit of Air France Flight 4590 were immortalised on voice recordings which helped investigators piece together what had gone wrong.
Pilot Christian Marty - who was accompanied by first officer Jean Marcot, 50 - was heard desperately trying to regain control of the Concorde as flames ripped along the left side of the aircraft.
He was informed of this by the control tower, who told him: "Concorde zero... 4590, you have flames. You have flames behind you."
Those piloting the plane decided to try and reach the nearby Le Bourget airport as they realised the situation was growing increasingly dire.
Seven seconds after receiving the first message from air traffic control, the Air France crew responded to inform them that there had been a 'breakdown' of engine two.
As the pilots desperately tried to orchestrate an emergency landing, Marty uttered his final words.
The recording from the cockpit captured him saying: "Too late... No time."
His co-pilot could then be heard adding: "Le Bourget, Le Bourget. Negative; we are trying Le Bourget."
A mere 16 seconds later, the audio come to an abrupt end, as the Concorde had crashed into the hotel in the French town of Gonesse.
Topics: World News, Travel, History
Olivia Burke