To mark 50 years since Concorde's first commercial flight, Air France has released a documentary featuring testimonies from five employees who worked on the aircraft, plus never-before-seen archival footage. Olivia Palamountain reports

Five decades after Concorde's first commercial flight, Air France has tracked down five employees who witnessed the debut take-off to front a new documentary entitled Concorde Air France: They Made the Legend Fly.

Filmed at Le Bourget's Air and Space Museum, where the aircraft now sits on permanent display, the documentary  stars a pilot, two flight attendants, a mechanic and a Concorde lounge agent, who are all still working at the airline today.

The team share accounts, anecdotes and personal photographs alongside rarely seen archival footage, revealing behind-the-scenes details of supersonic operations from the airport lounge to the cabin itself.

The film, available to view above courtesy of Air France's YouTube channel, runs to nearly 40 minutes and is presented by Benjamin Smith, chief executive officer of Air France-KLM and chair of the Air France Board of Directors. Filming provided rare access to Concorde's iconic cockpit – opened especially for the occasion – and the cabin interior designed by Andrée Putman.

Concorde entered commercial service on January 21, 1976, flying to Dakar and Rio de Janeiro and revolutionising air travel through its speed and distinctive silhouette. Capable of crossing the Atlantic in under four hours, it became a byword for a certain kind of glamour, carrying celebrities, heads of state and business leaders before retiring from service in May 2003 after 27 years of flying.

A symbol of Franco-British expertise and cooperation, the aircraft remains a defining element of Air France's identity and, according to the airline, "a precious heritage and an endless source of inspiration that continue to shape innovation and the modern customer experience."