Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville shared an official statement on the removal of the singer’s private plane, the Hemisphere Dancer, from Universal CityWalk Orlando.
Jimmy Buffett’s Hemisphere Dancer
In the following statement to WDWNT, Margaritaville said the plane will return next year.
The Hemisphere Dancer has been temporarily removed from Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville for refurbishment. She will return to CityWalk Orlando next year.
We previously reported on the plane’s removal after photographer bioreconstruct shared a photo of it being dismantled. The plane has been at the Lone Palm Airport Bar outside CityWalk’s Margaritaville for several years.
The Grumman HU-16 Albatross seaplane was manufactured in 1955 and was used by the U.S. Navy for several years. Buffett purchased and restored it in 1995, renaming it the Hemisphere Dancer. Buffett’s adventures in the plane include the incident recounted in the song “Jamaica Mistaica.” On January 16, 1996, Jamaican police shot at the Hemisphere Dancer because they thought it was smuggling drugs. Buffett, his wife, two children, U2’s lead singer Bono, and Island Records founder Chris Blackwell were all on board but no one was hurt.
The Hemisphere Dancer is also featured in Buffett’s autobiography, “A Pirate Looks at Fifty.” The memoir chronicles Buffett and his family flying around the Caribbean, Central, and South America for his 50th birthday.
Jimmy Buffett passed away in 2023 at the age of 76.
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