Plane sailing! Decommissioned Boeing 767 passenger jet is tugged out to sea ready to be transformed into a GLAMPING venue in Ireland

Businessman David McGowan paid £16,000 for the 30-year-old Boeing 767 passenger jet from Shannon Airport
Originally, Mr McGowan planned to transport the 50-tonne jet from Shannon to Sligo on the back of a truck
Officials told him transporting the jet by road would cause far too much disruption to traffic along the route
Mr McGowan is also going to use buses, taxis and railway trains as forms of accommodation at his unique venue

A decommissioned Boeing 767 is being transported along Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way to create the ultimate glamping venue.

The jet was flown into Shannon Airport in Co Clare and lifted onto a barge by a 750-tonne crane for the 36-hour journey to Enniscrone, Co Sligo.

Businessman David McGowan wants to use the aircraft as the centrepiece of his new ‘Quirky Nights Glamping’ venture in the popular seaside resort.

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This is the amazing scene as a 30-year-old Boeing 767 was towed along the west coast of Ireland from Shannon Airport to county Sligo

Businessman David McGowan paid £16,000 for the decommissioned jet to form the centrepiece of his new glamping venture

Mr McGowan had planned to transport the jet by road, but he would have to remove too many telephone wires electricity cables and traffic lights as well as lifting the 50-tonne aircraft over two low bridges, so local authorities refused to give him permission

After the jet was flown into Ireland, a team of engineers had to strip the wings from the 50-tonne aircraft for the next stage of their journey.

The 159-foot long aircraft was then towed from the airport to Knockmore Point at the edge of the complex where it was hoisted onto a barge.

The barge, which was towed by a powerful tug out the Shannon estuary and into the Atlantic Ocean for its 36-hour journey north.

Deirdre Whitney, property manager at Shannon Airport said: ‘David McGowan’s enthusiasm was infectious and we were delighted to be on hand to support him every step of the way with this unique project.

‘We pulled out all the stops to assist, with safety and minimizing disruption to airport customers our key priority. I certainly never thought I would see the day when an aircraft would be put on a barge and set sail out the estuary. It will have a new lease of life which will boost not only the local economy in Enniscrone, but right along the Wild Atlantic Way.

‘We wish David and his crew a bon voyage and every success with this venture.’

Instead, the determined businessman used a 150-tonne crane to lift the jet onto a barge and towed up along Ireland’s west coast

The aircraft arrived in Enniscrone safely after 36-hours at sea for the final part of its journey to the unique camping site

Hundreds of people in towns and villages stood along the shoreline to watch the jet as it slowly sailed up the coast

A drone captured aerial footage of the decommissioned passenger jet as it made its way down the Shannon Estuary

Mr McGowan paid £16,000 for the 30-year-old Boeing 767 which was being stored in Shannon Airport on Ireland's west coast

Mr McGowan hired a 150-tonne crane to lift the 50-tonne aircraft from the land onto the barge to tow it up the coast

Mr McGowan’s venture will also see other modes of transport, such as buses, taxis and a train used to house guests.

The businessman paid £16,000 for the 30-year-old jet.

Speaking to Today FM in Ireland, Mr McGowan said: ‘I have a 15 acre site there of marshy field and I was wondering what I could do with it. Whatever I was going to do with it, it had to be to do with tourism because we’re on the Wild Atlantic Way. I looked at different types of accommodation and unusual places to stay. I saw that glamping was a modern type of camping that was spreading throughout Europe.

‘I got the idea that I might like a plane. There are so many planes that have been decommissioned that have gone out of service. I rang around the three different airports, Dublin, Cork and Shannon and only Shannon got back to me and said they had one but that it was no good to me. They said it was too big.

‘I said “You hold that til I get down there”. When I got down there I said “Right, I’m thinking of putting this in my back garden”.’