Dave Billings, 44, from Derbyshire, has spent £50,000 on his first underground bunker and is investing another £20,000 to convert a Boeing 737 fuselage into a second fallout shelter in his garden
Rahmah Ghazali Content Editor
09:02, 12 Mar 2026Updated 09:02, 12 Mar 2026
Dave Billings with his 737 fuselage, that he is burying in his garden to extend his current underground shelter into a WW3-ready bunker, near Derby.
At least one British resident is convinced he’ll be prepared should World War Three ever arrive on these shores. Dave Billings, 44, from Hilton in Derbyshire, has already invested £50,000 constructing an underground shelter beneath his garden and is now committing a further £20,000 towards creating a second subterranean refuge in case international hostilities escalate closer to Britain.
The engineer erected his initial bunker over ten years ago following his relocation to what was formerly a military installation. However, he’s now determined to enhance it into a comprehensive fallout shelter. His current undertaking involves converting a Boeing 737 fuselage he purchased via Facebook Marketplace into a secondary bunker which he intends to inter within his garden later this year.
Whilst he doesn’t anticipate the ongoing tensions involving Iran will reach the UK imminently, Dave maintains that another worldwide conflict is unavoidable and wishes to remain ready, reports Yorkshire Live.
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He stated: “I don’t understand why this thing with Iran has just happened, but war seems to be very fashionable at the moment. Whatever happens, the best thing you can do is be prepared and if you’re 10 miles away from a blast, you’ll probably be alright in it, it would stop the radiation going down there.”
Once positioned beneath ground level, Dave calculates the new shelter could safeguard him from detonations occurring up to 10 miles distant. Meanwhile, he already possesses an operational bunker filled with provisions including foodstuffs, beer, lavatory facilities and sleeping accommodation.
David Billings, 44, spent £50,000 on an underground bunker is spending another £20,000 on a second buried hide out – in case the Iran war comes to Derbyshire.(Image: SWNS)
Dave revealed his new subterranean space won’t merely serve survival purposes but will also provide entertainment. “The plan is, if it’s not a fallout shelter it’s going to be a bar, a party room in the theme of a fallout shelter kitted out with all the bits so you won’t get bored down there as well as just surviving.
“You need some activities, don’t you? But there’s a lot of room to do things in there. I mean, it’s a Boeing 737, they’re pretty big!”.
Dave has already refurbished the aircraft’s galley and aspires to restore the lavatory to working order. He also intends to incorporate seating, sleeping quarters and a drinking area, whilst harbouring ambitions to fit a flight simulator complete with a reconstructed flight deck. Whilst making provisions for catastrophic circumstances, he maintains he doesn’t consider himself a conventional doomsday enthusiast.
He explained: “I’m still building this for fun at the moment. If I was a prepper, I’d be stopping everything else to get on with it. I do these things because they’re cool, I enjoy it. But this one’s a cool thing that’s got a purpose; it can be classed as functionable.
“If things escalate and it is going to be needed, I can speed the job up, but I don’t think anyone will bomb the Derbyshire Dales.”
Dave stated his perspective on potential warfare hasn’t altered since he originally constructed his shelter over ten years previously. He remarked: “I have no idea about politics, but I don’t think it’s necessarily Trump, these things just come out of the blue so quickly and it could end straight away, it could be dragged on or could get a lot worse.
“We can’t stop it, you can protest all you like but realistically whatever happens you’ve got to live with it. I just like to keep myself for myself and the way I do it is by making my own little world here.
Dave bought a Boeing 737 fuselage off Facebook Marketplace and is now turning it into an adjoining second bunker, which he will eventually bury in his garden in Derbyshire.
“When I’m in my area, I like to be safe, that’s it. That’s what I’m making.” Dave reveals his existing bunker already serves as accommodation where he occasionally views Formula One racing.
“The last [bunker] is spot on. I use it as a living room and watch the Formula One down there. It’s a good place to be if stuff starts going wrong, but if we actually talk about nuclear – and I think we’re way off that personally – we need this new room.
“After building it, I decided that the next one would be a proper fallout shelter because if you’re going to do it, you might as well do it properly.”
He acquired the decommissioned BMI Baby aircraft fuselage in December 2025 and had it delivered to his property with assistance from mates at an expense of £4,000.
Dave calculates the entire undertaking will require thousands more, encompassing approximately £8,000 for concrete, £3,000 for reinforcement mesh and £2,000 for insulation to guarantee the construction can endure pressure once interred below ground.
He intends to fill the bunker with three to six months’ worth of provisions and beverages, along with beer kept in both barrels and cans.
Prior to burying the fuselage, Dave intends to display it at Maker’s Central at the NEC in May, and will additionally discuss the venture at his son Oliver’s school. His seven year old lad has already grown remarkably fond of the unconventional venture.
Dave Billings felt the need to upgrade his original bunker because its flat roof means it is “more like a basement” – and he wanted a party room because if he is ever confined to quarters, he “might as well enjoy himself”.
Dave recalled: “I showed my wife the Facebook advert and she said ‘why are you thinking about buying that pile of scrap’. But Oliver said ‘that’s amazing, why haven’t you already bought it?'”.
“It’s a BMI Baby plane so he’s busy trying to remove all the stickers so it says BMI Baby again. He absolutely loves it, finished school and comes outside to see what I’m doing. So if it’s not a fallout shelter, it’s making him and me happy isn’t it?”.
“He’s not interested in looking at a tablet when he’s got a Boeing to go and play with.”
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