IRON MAIDEN's BRUCE DICKINSON To Fly Replica First World War Plane At Duxford Air Show

IRON MAIDEN frontman Bruce Dickinson wil fly a replica vintage World War I plane at the Duxford Air Show as part of an air show display team.

The singer, who has held a pilot's license for more than two decades, will take to the skies in his Fokker Dr1 triplane alongside several other vintage aircraft at the event over Duxford, England.

The Great War Display Team's two replica Fokker Dr1s were built by John Day and first flew in 2006.

Fokker Dr1 403/17 replicates the Dr1 flown by Lieutenant Johann Janez of Jasta 6, JGI. It carries the unit markings of a black and white striped tail and black cowling, with Janzen's personal marking of a white snake line on a black band, edged with white on the rear fuselage.

Janzen joined the German Air Force on May 4, 1916. Following pilot training, he was assigned to Jasta 23 in November 1916 and scored his first victory with this unit before being reassigned to Jasta 6 in October 1917. He briefly assumed command of Jasta 4 on March 28, 1918 but, just a week later, returned to Jasta 6 as its new Commanding Officer.

Scoring his fifth victory on May 4, 1918, Janzen's Fokker Dr1 was shot down five days later when his rudder cable was shot away. He survived the crash and scored eight more victories, giving him a total of 13 kills before he was shot down again on June 9, 1918. On this occasion, the interrupter gear on his Dr1 malfunctioned during a dogfight with a SPAD aircraft and he shot off his own propeller.

Janzen again survived but was captured and remained a prisoner until the end of the war.

After the sad death of John Day, who owned and built this replica Fokker Dr1 aircraft, it was bought by Dickinson, who will fly the aircraft at the Duxford Air Show.

Bruce says: "Aeroplanes started at the age of five with my godfather, in the RAF during the siege of Malta and one of 'Trenchard's apprentices.' My uncle was RAF and also an engineer.

"Until age 30 plastic aeroplanes and Biggles was as far as I got. Rubbish at maths and physics, I talked myself out of applying to the RAF and nearly joined the Army. Luckily for the UK military, I became a rock singer instead.

"I started actually flying at the ripe old age of 30. 7,000 hours later, I finished up as a Boeing 757 captain and 737 instructor.

"Luckily, the aircraft design I fly is still older than me, but the gap is closing.

"In my spare time, I sing a bit, own a company that fixes airliners and am trying to bring airships back into the skies. Actually, I should have been born in 1898, not 1958. C'est la vie."

The annual Duxford Air Show, which will be held on September 13 and 14, features 40 aircraft from different decades and attracts around 25,000 visitors each day.