Dickinson Launches World's Longest Aircraft

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By ( Louder ) published

Bruce’s latest venture is a record-breaking aerial phenomenon.

You may have heard that Iron Maiden legend Bruce Dickinson is something of a keen pilot during his time off.

Never one to shy away from bold new frontiers, his latest venture is an investment in a new, record-breaking aircraft that has been unveiled this week.

Called The Airlander, the monstrous, balloon-driven airship is the longest aircraft ever built, coming in at 302ft (92m) in length costing around £60 million. So basically, you can’t get one for christmas. Sorry.

The Airlander promises to eventually be modified to carry up to 50 tonnes of cargo and will spearhead a new generation of “quieter, more energy efficient and environmentally friendly planes”, and our Bruce is rather chuffed to be, ahem, aboard.

“It’s a game changer, in terms of things we can have in the air and things we can do,” he tells the BBC. “The airship has always been with us, it’s just been waiting for the technology to catch up.”

In the meantime, we’ll get to see Bruce get back to what we all love him doing the most, which is kicking seven shades of shit with Iron fucking Maiden at Sonisphere in July. With the band’s headline set on the Saturday set to be Maiden England’s final bow-out, expect some truly iconic scenes. See you there.

Merlin Alderslade
Merlin Alderslade
Executive Editor, Louder

Merlin was promoted to Executive Editor of Louder in early 2022, following over ten years working at Metal Hammer. While there, he served as Online Editor and Deputy Editor, before being promoted to Editor in 2016. Before joining Metal Hammer, Merlin worked as Associate Editor at Terrorizer Magazine and has written for Classic Rock, Rock Sound, eFestivals and others. Across his career he has interviewed legends including Ozzy Osbourne, Lemmy, Metallica, Iron Maiden (including getting a trip on Ed Force One courtesy of Bruce Dickinson), Guns N' Roses, KISS, Slipknot, System Of A Down and Meat Loaf. He has also presented and produced the Metal Hammer Podcast, presented the Metal Hammer Radio Show and is probably responsible for 90% of all nu metal-related content making it onto the site.