Production It took producer Jennings Lang a number of years to get permission from Air France to use the Concorde. Air France requested some changes to the story and dialogue. Lang argued the film was not a direct sequel because it used different characters and settings, apart from George Kennedy whose character was promoted to pilot. The film was originally going to be called Airport '79 - the Concorde but Lang decided to rename it so it would not be confused with Airport 75 and Airport 77. In October 1978 Universal announced that filming would start in November. Susan Blakely appeared in the film as the first in a three-picture deal she signed with Universal following the success of Rich Man, Poor Man. Parts of the film were also shot in Alta, Utah. Filming had finished by February 1979. Sylvia Kristel wrote in her memoirs that Delon was unhappy with the size of his trailer and insisted he be given Rich's trailer, which was larger. Rich complained to Lang, who supported Delon. Kristel wrote that towards the end the shoot, the director started "being overtly misogynistic. He treats me badly, shouting, making me repeat things all the time for no reason." Reception Critical reception The film was the recipient of mostly negative reviews by critics upon its release, and years later holds an approval rating of 25% on the film review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes based on eight reviews. Vincent Canby of The New York Times wrote, "'The Concorde — Airport '79' is — how should I put it? — not the best of the series, but to say that it's the worst is to convey the wrong impression. In this case, worst is best." Variety′s review called the film "Definitely not for sophisticates, "Concorde" is a throwback to the old popcorn genre, and rather enjoyable at that" but noted that "unintentional comedy still seems the "Airport" series' forte". Stu Goldstein BoxOffice graded the film as "Poor" and called it "so silly it's actually entertaining." David Ansen of Newsweek wrote, "You have to respect a movie so single-mindedly dedicated to High Silliness. The advantage of its blithe disregard for plausibility is a plot that zips along at such breakneck pace that the audience is too busy counting the holes in the Concorde to question the holes in the plot." Gene Siskel of the Chicago Tribune gave the film one star out