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 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.
Eddie is loud and proud on the tail of Ed Force One
Interestingly, Iron Maiden’s 747-400 (TF-AAK) does not have a VIP interior; it’s filled with a standard three-class seating arrangement, as it’s being wet-leased from Iceland’s Air Atlanta Icelandic. The customized livery and some minor interior modifications were handled by Volga-Dnepr Gulf.
Here are some additional photos:
These two engines were recently replaced after a March 12 ground accident involving a baggage vehicle in Chile.
Even the engine cowlings were adorned with the visage of band mascot Eddie
Iron Maiden’s 747-400 tour plane lands at KSEA
An Alaska Q400 take off behind TF-AAK
The plane was popular among airport staff
A wide-angle lens shows the less-than-glamorous side of a cargo ramp
Lead singer Bruce Dickinson is also the plane’s pilot he wears that uniform pretty well
Ed Force One’s last stop before SEA was YVR. It was parked in an awkward section of the airport so I couldn’t get good photos.
This site lists the tour dates, but most of us are probably tracking the aircraft 😉
http://airportwebcams.net/iron-maiden-ed-force-one-boeing-747-airport-schedule/
And IN CASE YOU’RE NOT, https://www.flightradar24.com/reg/tf-aak