Iron Maiden vocalist and commercial pilot Bruce Dickinson has flown the band's plane Ed Force One for countless tours over the years. Dickinson, who is turning 64 years old this year, has revealed in an interview with ABC News that he's hanging it up this year and having someone else fly the plane.
"Oh, no, no, no, no. We're going to be flying and I'm going to be in the back. Hey, look, I'm 63 — I'm 64 in August. You know, when you get to 65, if you're an airline pilot, they just take you out the back and shoot, right? So, I'm going to be sitting in the back being the backseat driver."
Dickinson also talked a little bit about being a pilot, and finding the time to do it with his busy schedule.
"What's even more interesting than Ed Force One is how the hell did I end up being an airline pilot in the first place? And secondly, how do you become an airline pilot whilst you're singing in a rock 'n' roll band? I've got more crazy airline stories than rock 'n' roll stories because, trust me, the days of the airline were way more rock 'n' roll than Iron Maiden is on stage. Well, off stage, rather."
Iron Maiden released two great mini-doc-style videos on Ed Force One a few years ago, which you can check out below.
Iron Maiden will hit the road this September with Trivium and Within Temptation.
w/ Trivium
9/11 El Paso, TX @ Don Haskins Center
9/13 Austin, TX @ Moody Center
9/15 Tulsa, OK @ Bok Center
9/17 Denver, CO @ Ball Arena
9/19 Salt Lake City, UT @ Usana Amphitheatre
9/21 Anaheim, CA @ Honda Center
9/25 Chula Vista, CA @ North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre
9/27 Concord, CA @ Concord Pavilion
9/29 Seattle, WA @ Climate Pledge Arena
9/30 Spokane, WA @ Spokane Arena
10/03 Sioux Falls, SD @ Denny Sanford Premier Center
10/05 Chicago, IL @ United Center
10/07 Columbus, OH @ Nationwide Arena
10/09 Detroit, MI @ Little Caesars Arena
10/11 Toronto, ON @ Scotiabank Centre
10/12 Hamilton, ON @ Firstontario Centre
10/15 Ottawa, ON @ Canadian Tire Centre
10/17 Worcester, MA @ Dcu Center
10/19 Belmont Park, NY @ Ubs Arena
10/21 Newark, NJ @ Prudential Center
10/23 Washington, DC @ Capital One Arena
10/25 Greensboro, NC @ Greensboro Coliseum
10/27 Tampa, FL @ Amalie Arena
