April 10, 2001 - Air France Concorde Cleared to Fly for Tire Tests, AFP Says
PARIS, France -- France's civil aviation authority granted approval for Air
France and the maker of the supersonic Concorde to fly the plane for tests as
the airline tries to get it back in service, Agence France Presse reported.
The ruling by the Direction Generale de L'Aviation Civile clears the way for
the plane to be flown from Paris to Istres, a military airfield where ground
tests will be conducted on new tires made by Michelin SA, the French news
organization said.
Air France's Concordes until now had been equipped with tires from Goodyear
Tire & Rubber Co. while British Airways Plc, the only other airline that owns
Concordes, uses Dunlop tires.
The tests will follow others undergone early in January, to evaluate the flow
of liquids from the engine following a rupture.
Supersonic aircraft flown by both Air France and British Airways Plc have
been grounded following a crash in Paris last July. The airlines have been
working toward resuming flights of the Concorde by autumn.
European Aeronautic, Defense and Space Co.'s Airbus division, which is the
successor to one of the two companies that built the Concorde, will conduct
the tests.
