Iron Maiden's iconic Ed Force One aeroplane was scrapped last year, but now it's back.
The Boeing 747 – which the band used to transport themselves and their crew and equipment around the world of 2016's The Book of Souls tour – was broken up at Cotswold Airport in Kemble, Gloucestershire, England, but fans can now wear it.
German company Aviationtag, which makes bespoke, wearable tags from scrapped aeroplane material, has launched a tag made from the 747. The company say they're already sold out of the tags – which are limited to 12,000 and cost €66.66 (of course) – but fans can sign up to be notified when more stock becomes available.
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"This a very small piece of a Boeing 747," says Iron Maiden frontman and Ed Force One Pilot Bruce Dickinson, in a video accompanying the product launch. "Not just any old Boeing 747, but the Boeing 747 which I learned to fly so I could fly on Maiden around the world. So this is a bit of the aeroplane. It's been turned into something entirely more useful."
“We have been working on this project for over two years, and we’re proud to finally present our Aviationtag x Iron Maiden Edition," says Aviationtag CCO Tobias Richter. "Ed Force One is one of the most famous aircraft in the world, and this edition captures its enduring legacy in a truly collectable form."
Eds Force One entered service with Air France in early 2003 before joining Air Atlanta Icelandic, a charter and lease airline based in Kópavogur, Iceland, in 2015. In addition to being leased by Iron Maiden, the 747 was used as a firefighter by Saudi Arabian airline Saudia.
"She always behaved like the Queen of the Skies that the 747 will always be," says Dickinson. "There will never be another to occupy her throne.
"The power, the noise of those four engines, the featherlight touchdowns (not my fault – blame good design) and her airborne elegance put the 747 in a unique category."
