You’d probably think that you’d have to be pretty well off to live in a passenger jet, right? Not so, as CNBC reported back in December that one man is living his dream in an old jet he bought for $US100,000 at a salvage yard.
At first glance, especially as seen above, the plane looks like an old crash site, something from a horror movie. But 73-year-old Bruce Campbell is living his best life inside that aeroplane.
It all started when Campbell was 15 years old and he saw an aeroplane salvage yard on TV. For some reason, he decided that he wanted to live in one when he grew up. So around the turn of the 21st century, he decided to work on making his dream come true. He just didn’t know how to exactly go about it. He already had the land, having purchased 10 acres in a suburb outside of Portland, Oregon for $US25,800. He just needed a plane to put on it.
Campbell eventually hired a salvage firm to find him a plane. It took a few months, but they found one, and it had quite a history. The company found Campbell a 1977 Boeing 727 in Greece. The plane had been used to transport the remains of Aristotle Onassis who was not only one of the world’s richest and most famous people, but also the husband of former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. So Campbell paid $US100,000 for the plane and it was transported to the Portland suburb of Hillsboro. It cost another $US20,000 to transport the plane through the streets of the town, which also required removing the plane’s engines.
It took another two years and $US15,000 or Campbell to make the plane livable.
Campbell added a makeshift shower, a temporary sink, a portable washing machine, a refrigerator, and a food service cart from another plane that serves as his pantry.
In place of a stove, Campbell has a microwave and a toaster oven, which he barely uses. “I’m a nerd. I don’t cook, so it’s a minimal kitchen area,” he said.
Next to the kitchen area, Campbell has his futon sofa, which doubles as his sleeping area, and his workbench.
Many of the plane’s systems, like the circuit breaker panels in the cockpit, are still active.
Now, Campbell spends his time restoring old computers or working on the plane. He gives people tours of his home. And according to CNBC, this unusual home costs Campbell about $US370 a month, $US220 of which is property taxes and an electricity bill that usually ranges from $US100 to $US250. He has dreams for the rest of the world, hoping that old-jet living catches on. “I have no regrets about pursuing this vision. In my experience with my guests, I believe that humanity will embrace this vision wholeheartedly in enough proportion that we can utilise every jetliner which retires from service” he said.
This article has been updated since it was previously published.