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British Airways 747 jet bought for £1 turned into party plane

Watch: Old British Airways jumbo jet, bought for £1, transformed into unique party plane

An iconic 747 British Airways jet, bought for just £1, has been transformed into a bar to host lavish plane parties.

The BA Negus plane, which resides at Cotswold Airport in Kemble, has been transformed into an events space to hold everything from private birthday parties to product launches and corporate events.

It was bought for just £1 in 2020 and has since been a labour of love for the airport's chief executive, Suzannah Harvey, after British Airways retired its fleet early due to the pandemic.

An iconic 747 British Airways jet bought for just £1 has become the first in the world to be transformed into a bar to host lavish plane parties. (SWNS)
An iconic 747 British Airways jet bought for just £1 has become the first in the world to be transformed into a bar to host lavish plane parties. (SWNS)

"I paid a pound for her, and we have a certain obligation to maintain it as is practical for public use," Harvey explains.

"The company has had to spend nearly £500,000 getting her prepped and ready here, but I think it's money well spent and it preserves her for future generations."

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While most of the original structure of the plane has stayed the same, the transformation has included stripping out the economy section to create the events space and the gallery has been changed into a bar.

A full rewiring with funky, custom lighting has also been carried out.

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Before the incredible makeover could get started, the plane first needed a really good clean both inside and out, a task which took one man an entire week and a half to complete.

"It's been a long old slog," Harvey continues. "She came into us in October 2020, and at the time I rather naively thought we'd have her up and running by the following Easter."

Despite delays to the original launch date, Harvey says the project has been really well received.

"We've had such tremendous support from everybody," she says. "All the contractors, all the people that have volunteered who are current BA 747 engineers - and here we are finally. She's ready and she's good to go."

The Negus entered the British Airways fleet on 15 February 1994, operating 13,398 flights and flying for 118,445 hours over nearly 60 million miles.

Its last passenger flight was from Miami to Heathrow on 6 April, 2020.

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The plane can now be hired for private parties and corporate events. (SWNS)
The plane can now be hired for private parties and corporate events. (SWNS)

If you love the idea of hosting a party in a plane, you'll have to fork out more than £1,000 an hour, a cost which doesn't seem to be putting off interested parties with Harvey revealing they have been inundated with enquiries - including interest from Netflix.

"With overwhelming support from volunteers and half a million pounds of investment later, Negus 747 is finally ready," she says. "The vision has finally come to fruition."

Harvey says an app will soon be launched to enable the general public to book tours of the aircraft.

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The plane has had a funky, light system fitted. (SWNS)
The plane has had a funky, light system fitted. (SWNS)

Cotswold Airport is family owned and operated and is the largest privately owned airport in Europe having a runway only 2m shorter than Bristol International.

Fo more information and updates follow @negus747 and @suziejet on Instagram.

Additional reporting SWNS.

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