As you might know Iron Maiden’s “Ed Force One” Jumbo Jet 747 carries the band, technicians and sets around the world, but before that the band used two smaller Boeing 757s.
The two aircraft came from Bruce Dickinson’s job as a pilot at Astraeus Airlines, which no longer exists, based at Gatwick Airport. The aircraft used by Maiden for the “Somewhere Back In Time” tour first flew in 1989 and operated Air 2000, Canada 3000, First Choice Airways and Ghana International Airlines.
The other 757 used in the “Final Frontier World Tour” began traveling in 1992 with Canada 3000.
Both had to be sold when Astraues Airlines went bankrupt in 2011. Thus, the latter was effectively dismantled in July 2012 at Phoenix Goodyear Airport, while the former was leased to Easyjet and then to Saudi Arabian Airlines and Thomas Cook. From the spring of 2013 it was converted into cargo plane and made its most recent flight on November 27 on a route from Indiana to Flint, Michigan.