People Transformed This Grounded Jumbo Jet Into A Hostel, And It’s Blowing Our Minds
Plane spotters at Stockholm Arlanda Airport in Sweden might have noticed that there’s one particular aircraft that always stays grounded. In fact, this jumbo jet hasn’t been up in the air since the early 2000s. But that’s not to say that this previously active Boeing 747-200 doesn’t have a purpose anymore. So just be prepared to have your mind blown when you discover what it’s actually used for now...
Plane-turned-hostel
Yes, the aircraft in question is now one of the most unique hostels on the planet! The jumbo jet was constructed way back in 1976 for Singapore Airlines. Following a stint with the iconic Pan Am it was then taken under the wing of Swedish airline Transjet. But due to the latter’s bankruptcy in 2002 the plane was decommissioned.
Good innings
Yet the aircraft did have a pretty good innings. The average airplane is usually put out to pasture after roughly three decades in the air. And a Boeing 747 typically racks up about 35,000 flights during this period. In terms of hours in the sky, that’s somewhere between 135,000 and 165,000. So what usually happens when retirement age hits?
Desert fate
Well, obsolete airplanes in the United States are normally transported to desert-based parking lots dubbed “boneyards.” Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona are particularly popular sites due to the dry weather conditions which can help to halt the rusting process. And these areas are big enough to store everything from B-52 bombers to commercial vehicles.
World’s biggest boneyard
Tucson in Arizona houses the biggest boneyard in the world at the Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. Here, approximately 4,400 planes, many of which are out-of-service government models, fill roughly 2,600 acres. And the total cost of such aircraft can amount to a staggering $32 billion! But although the vehicles themselves may no longer be operable, their parts can still be useful.
