Fans can now own a piece of English heavy metal band Iron Maiden’s musical legacy, thanks to a German aviation upcycling company.
The Boeing 747 aircraft that Iron Maiden used during their 2016 world tour has been dismantled with an aim to create limited-edition memorabilia made out of different parts of the plane for fans.
Named Ed Force One, the aircraft carried the band during their 2016 ‘Book of Souls’ world tour, and Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson, a trained pilot, flew it to different locations.
The plane was dismantled at Cotswold Airport in the UK in 2024 by German aviation upcycling company Aviationtag, CNN reported on Wednesday.
Aviationtag has repurposed sections of Ed Force One’s fuselage into unique collectible tags, which can be used as keychains or simply treasured as memorabilia. Portions of the tail fin, which previously featured the band’s iconic zombie-like mascot Eddie, have been integrated into select tags. Each tag, approximately 35/88 mm in size, is crafted from the aircraft’s white fuselage.
To create colour variations, parts of the blue tail fin — coated with up to nine layers of paint — were also used. Limited gold-painted tags, produced from a layer of gold-coloured paint beneath the fuselage, will be released at a later date.
The price of each tag is set at 66.66 euros as a nod to Iron Maiden’s hit song The Number of the Beast.
While a Boeing 747 is 71 metre in length, which theoretically allows for up to 1,00,000 tags to be produced, Aviationtag has opted for a more exclusive approach. “We want to keep offering our fans and collectors new aircraft from different airlines, rather than making massive editions from just one plane,” Aviationtag’s chief commercial officer Tobia Richter told CNN.
“She always behaved like the Queen of the Skies that the 747 will always be. 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,” Iron Maiden’s frontman Bruce Dickinson told CNN in a statement.
Formed by bassist and songwriter Steve Harris in 1975, Iron Maiden is considered the pioneer of the new wave of British heavy metal movement. Their mascot, Eddie, has become an iconic figure in metal culture, gracing album covers and stage designs. With classic albums like The Number of the Beast (1982), Powerslave (1984), and Seventh Son of a Seventh Son (1988), Iron Maiden has influenced generations of musicians.
The band’s current lineup features Steve Harris (bass), Bruce Dickinson (vocals), Dave Murray (guitar), Adrian Smith (guitar), Janick Gers (guitar), Nicko McBrain (drums).