Dear Sir/Madam,

Technically Concorde was a remarkable achievement - and aesthetically pleasing to boot. But the plane and those responsible for building her will only receive an honourable place in history if we now acknowledge and begin changing the mistaken assumptions, values and aspirations upon which it’s development and operation were based.

It is ironical - and very interesting - that Tony Benn, one of Britain's most prominent left-wing politicians, should have been instrumental in realising the Concorde dream, which benefited the very rich at great cost to everyone. And what a whiz thing it was to be able to fly across the Atlantic and arrive in New York earlier than it was when you left London!

Despite all the voices raised over the years, pointing out the social, economic and environmental insanity of the Concorde venture, nothing could deter many people from holding on to their infantile, non-sustainable, and thus ultimately catastrophic dreams (not forgetting the jobs and financial advantages it brought to some of them).

To me, seeing Concorde still being held up proudly as a supreme example of Anglo-French achievement is grotesque and depressing, considering that in reality it is a supreme example of the human arrogance and folly which continues to lead us toward oblivion on our vulnerable planet, Spaceship Earth, with its limited resources and finite carrying capacity.

It is a supreme example of man's inability to face up to reality (the limits necessary for survival on a finite planet) and learn from his mistakes. This, far more than its technology and beauty, is what Concorde will be remembered for.