MIAMI– Whilst made famous by the transatlantic flights from London (LHR) to New York (JFK) and the handful of other charters the airline’s flag carrier used to operate, the British Airways (BA) Concorde made a number of trips to Rovaniemi (RVN) as a seasonal Christmas Charter.
The first BA Concorde charter to the official home of Santa Claus touched down onto the snow covered runway of Rovaniemi on Christmas Day, 1984. The arrival of this supersonic jet brought 97 people from the United Kingdom to Northern Finland for a festive 8 hour visit.
The flights, which were once just a mere dream, became a staple of the Concorde’s charter, operating every year from 1984 until 1999. The flights also, arguably, have helped the airline continue to operate Christmas Charters to Lapland to this day, however on the short-haul Airbus fleet from London Gatwick (LGW).