British Virgin Islands 2013 - 10th Anniversary of Concorde’s Last Flight - Cupro Nickel Coin

An impressive coin representing an engineering marvel

Concorde was jointly developed and produced by Aerospatiale and the British Aircraft Corporation (BAC) under an Anglo-French treaty and first entered service in 1976. Its name reflects the treaty between the British and French governments which led to Concorde's construction - the name Concorde comes from the French word concorde, meaning agreement, harmony and union.

The aircraft first entered service in 1976 and for the next 27 years was a familiar sight taking off from London Heathrow or Paris Charles de Gaulle on its regular transatlantic flights to New York’s JFK or Washington Dulles. Whilst most commercial jets took eight hours to fly from New York to Paris, the average supersonic flight time on Concorde’s transatlantic routes was just 3.5 hours – an incredible experience for more than 2.5m passengers who flew with Concorde.

Following the announcement of Concorde’s retirement in April 2003, the 23rd October 2003 saw Concorde’s last west-bound commercial flight depart from London. This special occasion was marked by the illumination of Windsor Castle, an honour usually only accorded to state events and witnessed by Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II.

Available in Cupro Nickel and Proof Sterling Silver, this sought-after collector’s coin can also be acquired with a beautiful coloured finish.

The obverse of the coin features an effigy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Lord of Man, by Ian Rank-Broadley FRBS. Ian Rank-Broadley is one of the foremost sculptors working today. His effigy of H.M. Queen Elizabeth II has appeared on all UK coinage since 1998 and Pobjoy Mint has exclusive use of the ‘uncouped’ effigy that appears on the obverse of these coins.