≡

Browsing Tag: TF-AAK

PHOTOS: Iron Maiden’s “Ed Force One” 747 Rocks Seattle!

By

After the band's April 11 show in Tacoma, the band made the short hop up to Paine Field in Everett on April 12 for a VIP tour of the Boeing assembly plant before leaving the same day for their next tour stop in Denver.

Iron Maiden’s custom Boeing 747-400 takes off from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport

Bands customizing big transport jets for tours is nothing new. For instance, Alice Cooper, the Allman Brothers Band, Deep Purple, Elton John, Olivia Newton-John, and Peter Frampton all made use of The Starship (a Boeing 720) back in the 1970s.  Legendary metal band Iron Maiden has turned the volume up to 11 with their custom-liveried “Ed Force One” — named after their evil mascot, Eddie.

The lengthy list of cities on the tour is a cool addition to the livery.

The long list of cities on the tour is a cool addition to the livery.

What makes Iron Maiden’s tour planes even more unusual is that they’ve been piloted by lead singer Bruce Dickinson, who holds a transport pilot license. Iron Maiden’s last tour made use of a customized 757-200.

After the band’s April 11 show in Tacoma, WA, they made the short hop up to Paine Field in Everett, WA on April 12 for a VIP tour of their bird’s birthplace, the Boeing assembly plant, before leaving the same day for their next tour stop in Denver (Editor’s note: I got to see the beautiful #EdForceOne fly over my Denver office on departure!). Before they left Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, I was able to be there, on the ground, and get some up-close photos of the plane.