Ed Force One flies again

Symphony

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Jan 8, 2002
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IRON MAIDEN reports:

"Iron Maiden, with their crew and many tons of equipment, will once again be boarding Ed Force One in February 2011 to fly 50,000 miles round the globe on their continuing mammoth Final Frontier World Tour, playing 29 shows and visiting 26 cities in thirteen countries across 5 continents with BRUCE DICKINSON again in the pilot's seat, and heading into more new Frontiers of uncharted Maiden territory!!!

IRONMAIDENpress-2.jpg


The first show will be on February 11th in Moscow's Olympic Stadium, after which the Boeing 757, which will have new designs to tie in with the new album and tour, will fly the band to Singapore and Indonesia for Maiden's first ever shows there, before arriving in Australia to headline two arena dates and five Soundwave Festivals.

Ed Force One then turns its attention briefly to the Northern Hemisphere with a first show ever in South Korea and two shows in Tokyo, before heading all the way across the Pacific, a journey which (believe it or not!) is 6660 miles for two shows in Mexico. An extensive series of stadium shows through five South American countries follows, including a first visit to Belem, Northern Brazil, and, via Puerto Rico, the band will play the final show on this leg of the tour in Tampa, Florida, USA on April 17th, exactly 66 days after Moscow!

Says Bruce, "We were taken aback by the fantastic reaction from everyone to Ed Force One during the 2008/09 World Tour. As our fans all know from the Flight 666 film, which documented the trials and tribulations we underwent in order to get the whole project literally off the ground, the end result was well worth all the effort and complex logistics we had to deal with! The band and crew enjoyed themselves so much travelling that way, it seemed only logical to set up this part of The Final Frontier tour in the same way so we could get to see as many fans as possible all over the World, only this time we're pushing the boundaries even further and going to more places Maiden has never been before... in true Frontier style!! We very much look forward to playing in Singapore, Indonesia and South Korea for the first time, as well as revisiting our fans everywhere else.

"The set list will be different to this year's tour. Of course we will play more songs from the new album and some other recent material, but we will include a healthy dose of older fan favourites as we will be playing to so many new faces who we know will want to hear those songs live for the first time. We will cram into the plane as much of the production we used this year as is physically possible, including of course Eddie, and intend to replicate the spectacular light show in as many places as we are able. All in all it promises to be a fantastic trip for everyone!! So see you all soon".

Since its release in August on EMI (UME in the US), The Final Frontier - the band's 15th studio album - has proved their most successful chart album to date, registering the #1 sales chart slot in 28 countries around the globe; from Lebanon, Arabia and India in the East, to Canada in the West, New Zealand down South, throughout UK and Europe and across Latin America, as well as reaching #1 in Billboard's European, Tastemaker and Rock Charts, and #4 in the USA, which is the band's highest position ever there.

Having already played an extensive 25 date North American Tour and some selected European shows this year, Maiden will undertake a full European Tour in the summer of 2011. Some dates (as below) have already been announced but keep an eye on this site over the next few weeks and months for many more announcements.

The dates for Iron Maiden's Round The World Trip on Ed Force One and current European dates for The Final Frontier World Tour are:

February
11 - Moscow, Russia - Olympiski
15 - Singapore - Singapore Indoor Stadium
17 - Jakarta, Indonesia - Stadium Utama Gelaro Bung Karno Senayan
20 - Bali, Indonesia - Garuda Wisnu Kencana
23 - Melbourne, Australia - Hisense Arena
24 - Sydney, Australia - Entertainment Centre
26 - Brisbane, Australia - Showgrounds (Soundwave Festival)
27 - Sydney, Australia - Eastern Creek Raceway (Soundwave Festival)

March
4 - Melbourne, Australia - Showgrounds (Soundwave Festival)
5 - Adelaide, Australia - Bonython Park (Soundwave Festival)
7 - Perth, Australia - Steel Blue Oval (Soundwave Festival)
10 - Seoul, Korea - Chamsil Gymnasium
12 - Tokyo, Japan - Super Arena
13 - Tokyo, Japan - Super Arena
17 - Monterrey, Mexico - Banamex Theatre
18 - Mexico City, Mexico - Foro Sol
20 - Bogota, Columbia - CC Sapo
23 - Lima, Peru - Estadio San Marcos
26 - Sao Paulo, Brazil - Morumbi Stadium
27 - Rio De Janeiro, Brazil - HSBC Arena
30 - Brasilia, Brazil - Nilson Nelson Parking Lot

April
1 - Belem, Brazil - Parque De Exposicoes
3 - Recife, Brazil - Parque De Exposicoes
5 - Curitiba, Brazil - Expotrade
8 - Buenos Aires, Argentina - Velez Sarsfield
10 - Santiago, Chile - Estadio Nacional
14 - San Juan, Puerto Rico - Coliseo De Puerto Rico
16 - Sunrise, Florida - Bank Atlantic Center
17 - Tampa, Florida - St Pete Times Forum

July
June 30 - July 3 - Roskilde, Denmark - Roskilde Festival
1 - Gothenburg, Sweden - Ullevi Stadium
6 - Oslo, Norway - Telenor
8 - Helsinki, Finland - Olympic Stadium
10 - St Petersburg, Russia - SKK Peterburgskiy

As always we hope to facilitate 'First To The Barrier' for our fan club members at as many shows as possible, and exclusive ticket pre-sales in some countries (such as the USA), and details of these will be announced nearer the time here on IronMaiden.com.

There is also a Fan Club trip planned for the Florida shows! Details to be revealed shortly here.

UK fans - don't worry, we most certainly haven't forgotten you... you're next!!"
 
I will always love Maiden, they were my gateway into metal, but it always seems that their homeland is getting the short straw recently.

Don't get me wrong, the whole Ed Force One is a brilliant idea and the possibilities of of taking a metal gig to parts of the world where the fans there wouldn't have a chance of ever seeing a gig are endless

I'm hoping a (semi) major UK tour will be announced, as in more that an appearance at a festival and 1 gig at somewhere like Twickenham

Without griping too much, they say we're next, but it almost feels like we're last
 
Agreed. And it's not just recently. I always feel a twinge of annoyance when I see born and bred British bands jet off to headline hugely expensive festivals in far flung lands and completely short-change their homeland fans. I know it's difficult for the biggest name in metal but what wouldn't I give for them to go back to their roots and do a bloody thorough tour of the UK & Ireland. When did they last play the Ruskin Arms? It saddens me, as a huge Maiden fan, that the last time I saw them was 2006 :yell: