This Guy Next Door Built an Airbnb Out of Pablo Escobar's Old Plane and Now We're All Going Insane

By HOAR Team 3 August, 2025 6 mins read 342 Views

God, where do I even start with this mess.

So there's this absolute madman named Johnny Palmer living next to us in Bristol, and back in 2021 he decided it would be brilliant to drag a massive Boeing 727 onto an industrial estate and turn it into what he calls "the world's coolest Airbnb." The kicker? He swears it once belonged to Pablo Escobar. Whether that's true or just marketing genius, I honestly don't know anymore.

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The Noise Is Actually Mental

Listen. I'm all for creative entrepreneurship, but when you're trying to sleep at 2 AM and there's techno music blasting from a graffiti-covered airplane 200 meters away, your patience starts wearing thin. One neighbor put it perfectly: "It's hard enough when they have parties in there and you can hear the music all around the Brislington area." That's not an exaggeration - the sound carries like you wouldn't believe.

My mate Dave lives three streets over and texted me last Saturday: "Is that bloody plane having another rave?" At 11:47 PM. On a work night.

Now He Wants ANOTHER One

But here's where it gets properly mental - Johnny's not satisfied with just one aircraft. The 41-year-old British-Australian entrepreneur (and I use that term loosely) has submitted planning permission for a second Boeing 727. This one's supposed to be even taller - about three stories high - and serve as some kind of co-working space slash coffee shop slash "hub for young creatives."

His exact words were: "This one will be bigger and much more impressive. And much higher and a bigger structure." Because apparently what our quiet industrial estate needed was a second massive airplane looming over the new housing development.

The Money Side (Because Of Course)

I'll give Johnny this - the man knows how to make cash. During peak season, he's charging £850 per night for people to sleep in this thing. Even in the slow months, it's £250 minimum. The plane's got a sauna, hot tub, gold-plated shower (seriously), and sleeps four people who apparently want to "feel like billionaires" for a weekend.

Nearly fully booked year-round, according to him. Which explains why he thinks adding a second one is such a genius idea.

What the Neighbors Are Actually Saying

The planning objections are... well, they're not holding back. One person wrote: "What a complete waste of time, the one that is already in place has changed from this to this to this, the community doesn't use the first one let alone another." Another called it "just another eyesore" and questioned "who in their right minds want to go in the plane overlooking what will be a housing area on the back of a trading estate."

Harsh? Maybe. But when you're living with the reality of it...

The Pablo Escobar Thing (Is It Even Real?)

Here's where it gets interesting. Johnny admits he's not entirely sure about the Escobar connection. "Someone said that Pablo Escobar might have owned it for a while," he told reporters. "As to where it came before that who knows." The plane was built in 1968 for Japan Airlines, converted to a private jet in 1981, and had "a series of owners" before being decommissioned in 2012.

Rumors include an Arab prince, the Mafia, and yes, possibly the infamous drug lord. But Johnny's approach is basically: "That doesn't change the fact that we are doing so many positive stuff with it now."

Living Next to This Chaos

The thing is, Johnny originally chose this location because he thought people wouldn't have "strong opinions about the look of the area." That assumption has turned out to be spectacularly wrong. We might live on an industrial estate, but we still have to deal with the noise, the constant stream of Instagram influencers taking photos, and now the prospect of an even bigger airplane casting shadows over our homes.

The original plane sits on top of shipping containers and has working air-stairs, three toilets, a full kitchen, and even the original cockpit with working lights. It's actually pretty impressive from a technical standpoint.

But impressive doesn't mean we want to live next to it.

Johnny talks about people enjoying "that experience and living that fantasy for a little while" before returning to their "normal lives." The problem is, for those of us who actually live here, this IS our normal life now. And if he gets approval for plane number two, it's only going to get worse.

Sometimes I wonder if we should've moved when the first airplane showed up. But then again, where else are you going to find rent this cheap in Bristol?

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