PARIS (Reuters) - The sleek needle-nose of the supersonic Concorde was sold to an anonymous buyer for 278,650 pounds at an auction, over 30 times the price it was expected to fetch, auctioneers Christie's say. Over two hundred Concorde souvenirs, from the plane's instruction manual to its engine, were up for grabs in the auction, which brought in a total of 3.29 million euros. Christie's had expected to bring in a total of only about 250,000 euros from the sale, whose proceeds go to the Air France foundation, a charity for under-privileged children. "This enchanting white bird which made us all dream has once again worked its magic," said Francois Curiel, president of Christie's Europe. Concorde was put into retirement by Air France in May and by British Airways last month as already high running costs escalated after an Air France Concorde crashed in July 2000, killing 113 people. In Britain, British Airways Concorde souvenirs will be auctioned on December 1, with prices ranging from 30 pounds to 35,000 pounds.