BY: ALEX BROWN
Photos by: John Brecher
An old Portland native named Bruce Campbell has changed many people’s thinking on the possibilities of aircraft recycling, living out in the Oregon woods in a converted 727 jetliner. Although it’s still unclear how one might go about purchasing and hauling a retired jet into the woods, he makes some valuable points about the untapped potential of old airplanes. In particular, his aircraft home is something out of an aviation-freak’s wet dream.
“Jetliners are basically flying homes. It’s a sealed pressure canister. It’s incredibly strong. It will last practically forever,” said Campbell, in a recent video from Great Big Story. On the inside the gutted airplane contains all the conveniences of a modern home, including two bathrooms, a kitchen, living-room and bedroom—though Campbell keeps it minimal, and sleeps on a futon sofa. The shower is too, as Campbell puts it, primitive.
Still, there are many futuristic components of his unique home. For one, Campbell enters the plane from a retractable stairs-set that slides out of the plane’s underbelly. Given that it’s an airplane, his house also has a considerable number of windows. Even if they’re only a square foot each, this keeps the interior relatively bright. Not to mention, who doesn’t want to have their very own cockpit? It’s a close second to the childhood dream of having a fire pole in your bedroom.
As Campbell says, “Jetliners retire at a rate of about 3 per day.” He finds it peculiar that many of these planes are discarded at the same time that new houses are being built, considering the old planes could easily be recycled into homes themselves. “If you were an extraterrestrial, looking down on this behaviour, you’d wonder whether this species has all its marbles in place or not.” It’s a reasonable point, and given the opportunity, I think it’s safe to say that there are a considerable number of people out there who would be stoked to live in an airplane given the chance.
Image Sources: demilked.com
