November 22, 2011 9:31

Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson set to lose job as an airline pilot

Astraeus airlines has entered administration and has grounded all its flights

Photo Gallery: Iron Maiden
Photo: PA

Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson is set to lose his job as an airline pilot after the airline he works for announced that they would be entering administration.

Astraeus Airlines has been forced to stop all flights with immediate effect and suspend running of the company. They have blamed their downturn in fortunes on "lower than expected" business during the summer, reports BBC News.

The singer worked as one of the main commercial pilots for the airline and earlier this year flew one of the first flights out of New York after Hurricane Irene.

Dickinson also acts as the official pilot of his band and flew a 757 aeroplane which had been painted in Iron Maiden's colours on the band's recent extensive world tour, which ended in the summer.

The singer recently said that despite rumours that they were considering retirement, Iron Maiden plan to "make at least one more album" and have begun planning for the recording of the follow-up to 2010's 'The Final Frontier', which was the 15th studio LP of the veteran band's career.