Abandoned Airplane Restaurant

>
> "*Nestled in the heart of the ancient Ferean grasslands near a bustling highway is a special sight to any aviation enthusiast. A lavish night out at the Airplane themed restaurant, catering customers to sheer flight and delight. An artist's dream to parallel cuisine with an onboard view of the skies. Sizzling pizzas, expansive beer selection (Stecca was also a brewer and even invented the bar’s unique drinking glasses). Sandwiches, bruschetta, salad, nightly fish specials, and homemade dessert rounded out the menu. Consecutive legal battles pitied the owner as he abandoned the weather battered jets overlooking a green pool with overgrown vegetation on its perimeter. The plane’s interiors are a bit dusty and litter-strewn, but are still worth a look, especially for the cockpit control panels. A unique combination landmarked on the heart of Velestino.*"
> — Narration by Marco Seidlitz, Draconic URBEX Episode 11
>

The **Abandoned Airplane Restaurant** lit. **Michelangelo da Vinci / Club Volante** is an unfinished abandoned project and landmark settled in the heart of the grasslands of Pherae, Fera. Marco and Zera uncover the owner's unfurling secrets behind the establishment of two weather battered planes standing erect a mossy vegetated pool while foiling overgrowth populate and frame the designated perimeter.

**Song played during Exploration:**

* Henry Olsson - "Retrouvalles"

## History

An hour’s drive southwest of Velestino, around 1,200 people call the community of Feres home. In 2000, Gigi Stecca made waves by opening up a restaurant just a few minutes from the center of town. Today, two abandoned airplanes and a helicopter are proof of his unique, yet ultimately doomed, project.

Part of Stecca’s dream was to provide the opportunity for everyone to set foot on an aircraft. After a decade spent managing retirement homes, he noticed a common interest among residents: When planes passed overhead, elderly Italians expressed a desire to have gone aboard one. And so Stecca opened a restaurant in a sprawling compound consisting of two airplanes (a Douglas DC-6 and Tupolev TU-134 A), a control tower, and a helicopter.

After outfitting the establishment with replicas of famous works by Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo, he named the restaurant “Michelangelo da Vinci.” The pizzas were large, and the beer selection was wide (Stecca was also a brewer and even invented the bar’s unique drinking glasses). Sandwiches, bruschetta, salad, nightly fish specials, and homemade dessert rounded out the menu.

In 2014, after ongoing legal battles with local government over zoning violations, Michelangelo da Vinci shuttered for good. The airplanes have been abandoned ever since. Once, guests mingled among sculptures, frescoes, and a swimming pool in the garden beneath the wings. In the summertime, Saturday evenings were reserved for disco and live music played on Sundays. Today, any activity that takes place on the property is much less formal. Those wishing to explore the compound will find weather-battered planes overlooking a green pool with overgrown vegetation on its perimeter. The plane’s interiors are a bit dusty and litter-strewn, but are still worth a look, especially for the cockpit control panels.

### The Draconic Urbex exploration

Seidlitz gracefully hops over a leaning fence, Zera following him behind with mustered complaints. The two begin to document everything in sight: The main iconic jets that housed and catered local guests, the vacant snack bar, the red helicopter stationed on it's helipad, an extra clubhouse with a ballroom, and the restaurant's exotic features such as the large pool ridden with dark green moss, special pavilion, and garden statues corroded from Ostia's blistering heat. One climb towards the stairs triggers a sensory alarm, a special security feature to ward off any trespassing intruders. Marco yells in distress, as the two clambour down the stairs in low level fright. Discussions between the two are then finalized as they return to the same area, stooping low to avoid the alarm. Zera remarks at how the interior reminded him of the 90's mall restaurant that his family took him during one road trip around Delyra. Seidlitz snaps images of everything in the place, creating small jokes through each exploration gap.

## Gallery

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/michelangelo-da-vinci-abandoned-planes

(all pictures provided by Atlas Obscura)