British Airways pulls Concorde from U.S. and British air shows

NEW YORK (CNN) -- British Airways on Thursday canceled Concorde appearances at two air shows this weekend in Britain and the United States following Tuesday's crash of an Air France Concorde near Paris, CNN has learned.

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B.A. spokeswoman Honor Verrier said the crash led British Airways to add more safety checks to their fleet of seven Concordes, extending the amount of time each aircraft spends being serviced. That, in turn, led to the cancellations.

"The priority for Concorde is meeting its regular schedule safely and reliably," Verrier said.

The appearances were scheduled at AirVenture 2000 in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, and the Farnborough Air Show in Farnborough, England.

Concorde was to be one of the centerpieces of the Oshkosh show, where four special flights had been scheduled. Subsonic rides on the Concorde -- at $750 a ticket -- had sold out.

About 750,000 people were expected at the AirVenture show.

"Safety is our first priority," said Verrier, who added that "all immediate charters" were now being reviewed so the airline could maintain its regular non-charter schedule.

The Experimental Aircraft Association, which runs the annual show in Oshkosh that begins Friday, said refunds will be offered to show-goers who purchased tickets for hour-long flights by the Concorde north to Canada.

Concordes have made appearances at the show on five previous occasions, most recently in 1998, and have been one of its most popular draws.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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