When Jo Ann Ussery needed a new home in the 1990s, she chose something far outside the usual housing market: a retired Boeing 727. The Mississippi resident bought the passenger aircraft after losing her previous home in a fire and turned it into a place to live on her property.
How an airliner became a house
Ussery’s brother-in-law, who worked in aviation, suggested looking at a plane headed for dismantling. She bought a retired 727 and had it moved to land near Benoit, Mississippi. According to reporting by CNN, she spent less than $30,000 on the project and did much of the renovation herself.
The finished home had more than 1,500 square feet of space, with bedrooms, bathrooms and a hot tub installed where the cockpit had been. It was a working residence, not merely an aircraft parked for photographs.
Why the design fascinated people
The plane’s long fuselage created an unusual floor plan, while the cockpit provided a dramatic room overlooking the surrounding property. Converting an aircraft also meant finding practical solutions for insulation, plumbing, flooring and other daily needs. That combination of engineering and imagination made the project memorable long before unusual-home tours became a social-media staple.
What happened next
Ussery lived in the aircraft from 1995 to 1999. She later planned to move it to a nearby location where visitors could see it, but the plane was badly damaged during the move. Her home was lost.
Its short life does not diminish the achievement. Ussery transformed a vehicle designed for commercial flight into a family residence, demonstrating how far an unconventional housing idea can go with determination and ingenuity.
Further reading: CNN’s account, republished by Yahoo and Aviation Property Network.
