The whole operation carried out to this Concorde was to be undertaken in secret, as Pepsi wanted to keep all the surprise for the moment when it would unveil its new identity, Pepsi Blue. Concorde “Sierra Delta” was thus covered by brown wrapping paper after it was painted; this would allow as few people as possible to be aware of the new paint scheme. It eventually left the hanger on March 31st during the  night, and was quickly rolled to the runway where it took off for London – Gatwick (LGW), where Pepsi had planned to receive its guests at the special launch event. It was Freud Communications that launched the new drink, Pepsi Blue, at Gatwick Airport with the revealing of Concorde branded with the colour and logo of the product. The Concorde was immediately towed to the hanger after its arrival, and made ready for the show.

And yet, a few days before the new brand was unveiled, Richard Branson had apparently heard about the advertisement operation, as proved ads for the Virgin Cola soft drink in the British press. A few articles about an Air France Concorde being repainted with a blue colour scheme were issued in the newspapers.

The show took place on 02 April 1996, with the presence of Claudia Schiffer, Andre Agassi, Cindy Crawford, and hundreds of journalists invited by Pepsi for the event. It was Freud Communications that launched the new drink, Pepsi Blue, at Gatwick Airport with the revealing of Concorde branded with the colour and logo of the product.

• Lighting design – Patrick Woodroffe.

• Lighting director and programming – Vince Foster.

• Production – Robbie Williams.

• Producer – Matthew Freud, Freud Communications.

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People were really astonished to see the Concorde with the blue livery. Flight attendants each had a special pin on their uniform designed for the occasion.