An original design drawing for the Concorde aircraft is being offered at auction when Bonhams returns to the Royal Air Force Museum in Hendon, U.K., on April 29 for its annual sale. The technical sketch, dated September 10, 1968 and signed by test pilot Brian Trubshaw, is estimated at $1,500–2,300.
The Concorde prototype first flew in 1969, the result of a decade-long collaboration between the British and French aircraft industries. The many design drawings produced during that partnership represent one of the last major aircraft projects developed before computer-aided design became widespread.
October 24, 2013 marks the tenth anniversary of the Concorde’s final flight. Among the related lots at the auction is the very tip of a Concorde nosecone, expected to fetch $3,000–4,500.