A headache-inducing airplane story begins with a rotted plane sitting in an airport. Its owner no longer wanted it, as the negative impact it brought was far from minor.
He was concerned that the retired Boeing 727 aircraft, with 59 years of history, could be used by terrorists, so he decided to sell it for just one dollar. Now it has transformed into a seaside suite in the jungle, offering guests a scenic view of the ocean.
Before being sold, the plane had been parked between two runways at Juan Santamaria International Airport in Costa Rica. During its over 15 years there, the aircraft’s sleek aluminum body was used for firefighting drills, and burning rubber tires were used to simulate jet fuel fires.
The airport seemed oblivious to or unconcerned with the identity of the owner, who is an Indian man living in New York.
Prior to him, the Boeing aircraft was first owned by South African Airways in 1965, and then passed on to Avianca Airlines in Colombia in 1980. It eventually ended up in the hands of the aforementioned owner in New York. Around 2001, when terrorists attacked the U.S. and began to roam freely, he started to worry.
He feared that terrorists “could use that crashed airplane as a place to launch terrorist attacks,” Allan Templeton, a man who purchased the plane from that owner, told Epoch Times, “It is very easy for terrorists to hide there and then launch terrorist attacks at the airport.”
In 2006, the owner happily handed over the plane to 69-year-old Templeton, who operates the Costa Verde Hotel in Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica, for just one dollar.
“He said, ‘Sure, I’ll give it to you, no problem,'” Templeton said, “So the end result is very good.”
At the airport, Mr. Templeton disassembled and separated the aircraft into huge cylindrical steel pieces, each piece transported by 18-wheelers and then lifted by cranes to his property for reassembly. He plans to rebuild it into a suite at his Costa Verde Hotel, a project costing hundreds of thousands of dollars.
By 2008, when the work was completed, the first batch of guests arrived at his 727 “Aircraft Fuselage Jungle Canopy Suite,” Templeton worried they might not be pleased. It turned out his concern was unfounded. “Everyone was very happy, they love it,” he said, “The location is great.”
The mountaintop shines in the bright sky, surrounded by jungle on all sides. The bulky fuselage is supported by three massive poured concrete pedestals where the landing gear should be.
Surprisingly, and perhaps shockingly, the large aluminum cylindrical body is simply placed there without being deeply embedded into the ground. It is “tethered to the concrete like a wild animal,” the owner says.
Approximately 200 steps wind up to a spacious and warm teakwood terrace where a wing would be. The expansive, sloping roof provides ample shade. The jungle resounds with cries, barks, and monkey chatter. There are plenty of monkeys here.
The aircraft exudes a cozy treehouse vibe, but much larger than a typical treehouse.
Inside, it is unexpectedly spacious, a stark contrast to one’s typical perception of commercial planes – cramped overhead bins crammed with luggage, narrow seats filled with people, all tightly and uncomfortably packed together.
There is no sense of discomfort in this aircraft suite.
The spacious interior is due to its clever reconstruction.
The floor inside is much lower than the old flight deck position. Guests are actually standing in the lower bottom, which used to be the cargo hold. With the extra space, the ceiling is 10 feet high, making air travel suddenly seem luxurious.
Years of abandonment have turned the 727 into a Frankenstein-like monster. Many old planes are dismantled for parts and installed on more suitable aircraft for flying, and the Costa Verde Hotel’s 727 suite was no exception.
Its tail is left with very little remaining – all parts have been removed – though it doesn’t really matter anymore.
“The tail is in the jungle, you can’t see it anyway,” Templeton says, adding that the original cockpit had no seats, “so I brought some seats from a Boeing 737 from Argentina, they are exactly the same as the 727.”
Guests can freely sit in the pilot or co-pilot’s seat, watching monkeys outside.
After its wings were removed and installed on other 727s, leaving behind two large, useless stumps, Mr. Templeton came up with the idea to install balconies, which beautifully frame Costa Rica’s breathtaking views.
Even the portholes are not original – his 727 didn’t have any initially – he purchased them, imported and installed to give the suite a real sense of air travel. Landing gear below the cockpit adds a wonderful touch.
Two bedrooms welcome guests with warm wooden walls. The kitchen resides in the sturdy upper structure of the fuselage, in the crossbeam where the wing meets the fuselage. Bathrooms and showers are located at the tail.
Of the hundred guests who visit annually, most are American families. Some travelers stay here to create content for the internet, which has brought many troubles to Mr. Templeton. Drones hover over his roof, and some influencers claim the suite as their own, saying they built it themselves.
“We posted signs: ‘No Access to Roof,’ but we didn’t install any barriers or anything,” he says. But at least if they fall and get hurt, they can’t say we didn’t warn them.
“I mean, it’s really crazy,” he says, “These people want to use my project so they can attract traffic, or even sell real estate or other things.”
Mr. Templeton moved to Costa Rica in 1979. He developed a passion for coin collecting, which later evolved into planting and exporting foreign plants. This eventually grew into a business, and he ended up owning 200 employees. In 2000, he sold his farm and founded the hotel that now has a Boeing aircraft.
How did the idea to transform an airplane come about?
The inspiration for the Boeing came from Forbes.
“They had published an article about a man in Tennessee who used an old 727 fuselage,” he said, “That’s where I got the idea to put the plane on several bases.”
Mr. Templeton, originally from Connecticut, fell in love with Costa Rica while serving in the Peace Corps in his early twenties. He has always been proactive and determined, aspiring to turn dreams into reality.
“I opened a hotel in 1988 with only three rooms,” he said, referring to how the hotel grew to 50 rooms and then to having his aircraft. “That’s what I love to do. I’m an entrepreneur. I like to build projects, and my favorite setting is the jungle.”
The original article “Man Turns Rotted Boeing 727 Airliner Into Stunning Beachside Suite In Jungle—Look Inside” was published on the English website of Epoch Times.