=20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- This article was sent to you by someone who found it on SF Gate. The original article can be found on SFGate.com here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=3D/news/archive/2002/12/04/i= nternational0450EST0470.DTL ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Wednesday, December 4, 2002 (AP) Piece of rudder fell off Concorde while approaching New York, British Airwa= ys says (12-04) 01:50 PST LONDON (AP) -- Part of the rudder on the tail of a British Airways Concorde fell off as the supersonic jet approached New York, the airline said Tuesday. Pilots on Flight 001 from London felt a small vibration as they approach= ed John F. Kennedy International Airport on Nov. 27, British Airways spokeswoman Jo Devereux said. The landing was smooth, but once the plane was on the ground workers discovered part of the lowest of four rudder sections on the tail fin was missing. Safety aboard the supersonic jet has been in the spotlight since the July 2000 crash of an Air France Concorde after takeoff from Paris killed 113 people and grounded the planes for more than a year. British Airways and Air France are the only airlines flying the Concorde. Devereux said the rudder problem did not affect the pilots' ability to control the plane and the flight was never in any danger. "Concorde's a very sophisticated aircraft," she said, adding that the plane had many backup systems and that the damaged rudder was one of four. Ninety-six passengers and nine crew members were aboard, she said. Devereux said British Airways had informed all appropriate regulators of the problem and that the airline and Britain's air accident investigations bureau were both investigating. British Airways was conducting extra checks on the rudders of its other Concordes, she said. The damaged rudder has been replaced and the jet returned to London, she added. Last month an Air France Concorde flying from New York to Paris frighten= ed passengers with a steep descent after an engine malfunction. In July, a British Airways Concorde en route to New York turned back to London after an engine problem made it difficult for the plane to fly straight. =20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright 2002 AP