This article from NYTimes.com has been sent to you by psa188@xxxxxxxxx /-------------------- advertisement -----------------------\ FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION: IN AMERICA - IN THEATRES NOVEMBER 26 Fox Searchlight Pictures proudly presents IN AMERICA directed by Academy Award(R) Nominee Jim Sheridan (My Left Foot and In The Name of the Father). IN AMERICA stars Samantha Morton, Paddy Considine and Djimon Hounsou. For more info: http://www.foxsearchlight.com/inamerica \----------------------------------------------------------/ For Concorde, a Far Slower Ride at a Much Lower Altitude November 26, 2003 By MICHELLE O'DONNELL A marvel of British and French aeronautical engineering was towed to Manhattan yesterday. A Concorde jet, one of seven recently retired from flight by British Airways, sailed up the Hudson River aboard a rusty barge to its new home at the Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum at Pier 86, on 46th Street. As aviation passages go, the chilly late-morning ceremony was one filled with patriotism and a fair bit of supersonic lust by gray-haired male speakers. "It certainly is the sexiest machine I've ever seen," said Tom Tyrrell, a retired Marine Corps colonel who is the museum's chief executive. She was "a gorgeous bird," said James G. Kennedy, a construction magnate, who was not alone in assigning the supersonic jet gender. Concorde was the defining symbol of speed, beauty, style and sex, gushed a British deputy consul general, Duncan Taylor. The women at the ceremony huddled under bulky coats and wiped their noses in the chill. For all the shared affections of the British and Americans, there was the prickly issue of nationalism. And everyone danced around it like religion in an interfaith marriage. The Americans thanked the British for the plane but quickly lathered the ceremony with all things American. Miss U.S.O. sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" as helicopters buzzed overhead, and American speakers dominated the dais. A rabbi said a prayer praising the Concorde for showing what speed could do for the cause of freedom. The British could enjoy that the plane - officially Concorde G-BOAD, known as Alpha Delta - was berthed east, with its needle nose pointed toward the queen and its aft pointed at New Jersey and the rest of the United States. Beyond that, the advantage was American. Mr. Taylor was the fifth speaker but only the first British one, a fact he feebly pointed out. Tea and finger sandwiches were set out at a reception afterward, alongside Pepsi and brownies. No speaker made any reference to the French, who had, after all, engineered the supersonic jet with the British. After the crowd had retreated inside the museum for the reception, two British tourists paid their entrance fee to the museum and walked past the aroma of a McDonald's out to the pier to inspect the plane. They found the jet alone, tied down to the barge and surrounded by a pier full of empty chairs. "It is sad, isn't it? A bit degrading," Andy Thomson said to his friend Dave Clipstone. "It's lost a bit of its dignity," Mr. Clipstone agreed. "It does seem slightly ironic that the Yanks didn't want anything to do with it when it was flying," Mr. Thomson said. "Trust no one," Mr. Clipstone replied. "Especially the French." http://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/26/nyregion/26CONC.html?ex=1070857842&ei=1&en=dd13231e1704cd59 --------------------------------- Get Home Delivery of The New York Times Newspaper. Imagine reading The New York Times any time & anywhere you like! Leisurely catch up on events & expand your horizons. Enjoy now for 50% off Home Delivery! Click here: http://www.nytimes.com/ads/nytcirc/index.html HOW TO ADVERTISE --------------------------------- For information on advertising in e-mail newsletters or other creative advertising opportunities with The New York Times on the Web, please contact onlinesales@xxxxxxxxxxx or visit our online media kit at http://www.nytimes.com/adinfo For general information about NYTimes.com, write to help@xxxxxxxxxxxx Copyright 2003 The New York Times Company