Among my most memorable flight experiences was traveling on Concorde. Everything about the aircraft, the in-flight service, the very selective pre-boarding, and the astounding view out the tiny windows in flight was fantastic.
Of course, Air France had its own separate boarding area and process for Concorde passengers. The moment you entered the lounge, you knew something special was in store for you. When you walked in, someone instantly handed you a glass of Champagne.
Never mind it was 8AM. Anytime is time for Dom Perignon.
There were small seating areas placed around the lounge with nearly every seat full. The aircraft only seated 144 passengers, so at that time of the morning everyone was relaxing and preparing to board the flight to Paris.
You might ask at this point how (or why) I was in this boarding group. Truth be told it was an extraordinary stroke of luck on my part and a reliable personal connection with an Air France district sales manager in New York City.
About 20 minutes before boarding, everyone was talking, laughing and generally thrilled to be in that select group of travelers. Suddenly the door opened, and within seconds all of the chatter stopped. It was instantly quiet. I’d never seen anything unfold quite like that.
Jackie Kennedy Onassis and a traveling companion had just walked into the lounge; they were booked to travel on that very same Concorde to Paris. For a moment, everyone in the salon was stunned. Sure, celebrities and wanna’ be tycoons traveled on Concorde, but this was special.
We were all 20′ away from the most recognizable woman on earth.
Unfortunately, there was no possible chance of Jackie sitting next to me during the 3 1/2 hour flight, so I occupied my time with Beluga Caviar, even more Champagne, lunch (at breakfast time) and Cognac. That is indeed the breakfast of champions.
At one point during my meal, I looked out the window, and I could actually see the curve of the earth as we flew along at an altitude of 55,000 feet with a ground speed of 1,300 miles per hour. This was undoubtedly no regular flight, it was stratospheric.
I still have the wonderful pen Air France gave us in their amenity kit. I wonder if Jackie ever used hers?
Are we there yet? 