Bruce Dickinson, the lead singer from the band Iron Maiden, has decided to try a new career, according to the Telegraph, which reports Dickinson's plans to start his own airline.
Dickinson has a fortune that is reputed to be in excess of $100 million, so he clearly doesn't have to work, though he keeps himself incredibly busy. In addition to deciding to start a new airline, he still has an upcoming 36-date world tour that will travel to 30 different countries.
"The reason I do all the things I do now is because I love them," Dickinson told the Telegraph. "Life is too short to do the things you don't love doing.
"If your only arbiter of anything is money, really you should...go and rob banks," Dickinson added.
Rather than rob banks, Dickinson has invested in a Welsh aviation business, Cardiff Aviation, with his partner, Mario Fulgoni. He hopes to be able to employ up to 1,000 people within the next five years. He has spent the past 20 years as a charter pilot, racking up over 7,000 flying hours. His interest in flying began when the drummer of Iron Maiden took him up for a flight after learning to fly in the 1980s.
"The uncharitable thought did occur to me, if a drummer can learn to fly, anyone can," Dickinson said. "Then, one day on holiday in Florida, I decided to take a trial lesson, for 35 bucks, which shows how long ago it was.
"And I had what can only be described as a semi-mystical experience," Dickinson said. "It really was an epiphany."
He earned his license in 1991, and then began flying light aircraft before moving on to twin-engine aircraft. He also began flying the band around before getting a job at British World Airlines, a company that went out of business after 9/11. He then began flying for the Icelandic airline Astraeus, which went out of business in November 2011.
"I did the very last landing for Astraeus," Dickinson said. "It went bust when I was mid-air between Jeddah and Manchester, flying 200 Hajj pilgrims home for BMI."
It was at that point that Dickinson thought about managing an airline himself, and partnered with Fulgoni, who had been the chief executive at Astraeus. The pair invested in a plant three miles from Cardiff.
"South Wales is a hub of aviation," Dickinson said. "We have, at the moment, one full-time maintenance shift, and as we've funded it all ourselves, our costs are nailed to the floor." Any further investment would come from venture capitalists.
Cardiff Aviation is involved in many aspects of the aviation industry, including maintenance for aircraft. However, Dickinson is most excited about the discussions between Cardiff Aviation and the Civil Aviation Authority about setting up an airline.
"Subject to approvals, we'll be in the air within the next 50 days," Dickinson said. "Clearly that fits with the maintenance - both operations need each other."
The hope to start with three private jets before acquiring rights to use regional jets, with the eventual goal of larger, full passenger jets.
"The market is ripe for an outsourcing airline that provides extra capacity," Dickinson said. "We want to provide British jobs, British pilots and British-operated aircraft."
To prevent getting bored with only being a rock star and running an aviation company, Dickinson has also gotten involved in beer. The band has a new beer that is being promoted on the tour, which Dickinson spent six weeks tasting and sampling at Robinsons Brewery in Stockport until he was satisfied with the flavor. The beer will be in 10,000 pubs next week, according to Dickinson.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
