Ed Force One...

[Basvarken]

I'm not a big Iron Maiden fan anymore (used to be when I was a teenager).
But I think this is actually really cool

[gweimer]

As I recall, this was something that was public knowledge a number of years back, and I believe he also piloted some rescue missions in the Middle East.

[Basvarken]

It's a new plane Gary. A Boeing 747! Much bigger than the previous plane he flew.

[Highlander]

He's been working as a commercial pilot (a-la-Morse) on Boeing 757's for some years... he flew in supplies to NY post the hurricane a few years back, being the fist one to land as soon as the relevant airport opened, so the story goes...
The original Ed Force One was a 757...
He also flies and has stakes in a Fokker dri-plane replica over here...
Saw him on Ice Pilots flying a DC3 and a DC4... and iirc, a DHC Otter with floats...
Quite an accomplished pilot...

[wellREDman]

He did his flight training with my next door neighbour, and waaay back, my mother in law was his fencing coach 

[uwe]

I wonder how they get insurance for all this. If Ed Force One crashes, the whole Iron Maiden organisation is wiped out. Our life insurance gets the creeps if there is more than a certain number of partners of the firm travelling in one plane.

[Highlander]

... Our life insurance gets the creeps if there is more than a certain number of partners of the firm travelling in one plane.

If someone else was up front of the bus and it crashed it would not make much of a difference to those on the back seat, and as for the highlighted section, think Lynyrd Skynyrd...

[66Atlas]

Maybe they had an escape pod installed. It worked for president Indiana Jones.



And no, the real AF One doesn't have one.

[uwe]

Not even a jet seat for the Pres?

[Highlander]

Just in case ... no, el-Presidente can not travel from the front to the back of AF1 on the cargo deck, as he did in the film, as the wing-spars and undercarriage bays tend to get in the way...
AF1 can refuel in flight though...

[Basvarken]

Bruce may be a fine pilot. He's not such a good driver... 

http://www.blabbermouth.net/news/iron-maidens-plane-badly-damaged-in-collision-at-santiago-airport/

[66Atlas]

Ouch, I'm sure they can buff that out 

At least the engines weren't running at the time or it would have been much scarier for the tug driver.

I love how they like to emphasize that Bruce is the pilot.  I'm sure there are times when he actually pilots the plane but it's a wet lease with a full crew so I'm sure in reality he spends more of his time resting than "working" the flight

[uwe]

This I would hope. And not that he hits the cockpit immediately after a gig.

[luve2fli]

Bruce may be a fine pilot. He's not such a good driver... 

According to the Blabbermouth article:

"The band .... revealed that none of its members and equipment were on board at the time"

"The incident occurred when Ed Force One was tethered to a tow truck ..... to be taken for refueling prior to flying over the Andes to Cordoba. On moving, the steering pin that is part of the mechanism that connects the ground tug to the aircraft seemingly fell out. As a result, the aircraft had no steering and collided with the ground tug, badly damaging the undercarriage, two of the plane's engines and injuring two ground tug operators, both of whom have been taken to hospital."

That would mean that the plane was at the gate and being dragged out by ground-crew, not under power from the flight-deck. Dickinson had nothing to do with this. I smell a substantial lawsuit coming against the Benítez International Airport for negligence .....

[uwe]

Run for the hills Andes, you dastardly sabotage Chileans!!! Eddie's wrath will be upon you!!!