June 21, 2022 Aeropods

The Liberty Gazette

June 21, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

A couple of years ago, seven months into “two weeks to flatten the curve,” we explored inventive ways to repurpose aircraft. It was our way of contributing to some DYI projects you could try with all that idle time we all had when commies shut down the world. 

We started our look on the bright side with Dr. Cody Abshier’s Twin Beech, repurposed for “Tool School,” and ventured out to the Brit Steve Jones, who converted an engine nacelle into a camper, South Koreans, who turned a Boeing 747 into a restaurant, much like New Zealanders, who spruced up a C-47 for restaurant use, and the 1939 Boeing 307 Stratoliner that became a yacht named “Cosmic Muffin.” 

While most aircraft are cut up and the parts recycled for use in other industries, such as window frames and beverage cans, there are exceptions. Last year, a couple of brilliant Irishmen were also thinking about all the ways in which old airplanes could be reused, and out of their brainstorms popped Aeropod, a company that converts sections of jet airliners into work or living spaces and customizes them to their clients’ specifications. 

Kevin Regan and Shane Thornton have had careers in water leak detection and remediation, so they took their engineering and design skills and snagged a section of fuselage from a retired Airbus A320 at Cardiff Airport in neighboring Wales and built their first aeropod.

The fuselages are almost 13 feet wide, and they cut them into three different length options. You can choose to have five windows on each side (so, space equivalent to five rows of seats), which gets you a cool little building 9.35 feet long, or the medium size, which gets you eight windows per side for a 14.96 foot-long space, all the way up to the order of jumbo fries, ten windows on each side, giving you 18.7 feet of depth for your office, home extension, garden, or whatever whirs your jets. 

Your unique Aeropod is only limited by your imagination. One of these would definitely make a cool working environment. But what about a kids’ play space, a guest room, or a place to keep bikes and outdoor toys? You could have them make one into a small bar, coffee shop, or bookstore. You can choose your colors and paint schemes, or, consider a vinyl wrap for the exterior instead of paint. 

Kevin and Shane thought ahead, so if you might want to make it portable, that’s also possible, as they build in a lifting system so you can take it wherever you want. 

They call it “bespoke,” and offer these pods fully insulated, wired with USB sockets, LED lights, and large glass fronts for amazing panoramic viewing. 

Dr. Abshier could probably do the same thing with that twin Beech, but he since he has the whole air frame, he can create an even more awesome pod. Check out the Irish guys at aeropods.ie, and check out the local twin Beech along North San Jacinto. 

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com