IRON MAIDEN frontman Bruce Dickinson, who flies the band on tours, has been made an honorary RAF Group Captain.

The heavy metal legend was enrolled as a member of the 601 (County of London) Squadron this week as a reward for his long-term support of the RAF.

Dickinson, 61 – worth around £90million – trained as a pilot after taking a break from IRON MAIDEN in the 1990s. He rejoined in 1999, flying his bandmates in Ed Force One – an adapted Boeing 747.

The plane’s livery includes the band’s logo and mascot, Eddie, painted on the tail.

The rocker formed a close alliance with the RAF in 2008, taking the controls of an MoD-chartered 747 to bring its pilots home from Afghanistan to RAF Wittering in Cambridgeshire.