Scale Model of Boeing 777 Built Entirely From Paper

San Francisco-based designer Luca Iaconi-Stewart is building a 1:60 scale model of a Boeing 777 out of manila folders, a project that he has been working on and off for the past 5 years. The 22-year-old began his incredibly detailed model back in 2008 after becoming inspired from an architecture class where he learnt to make simple models out of card. Iaconi-Stewart decided to take the idea a step further and began work on an airplane.

Iaconi-Stewart discovered a detailed schematic of an Air India 777-300ER online which he recreated in Adobe Illustrator before printing them directly onto the paper manila folders. Iaconi-Stewart says he has had to redesign many elements to make them work, saying that the hardest parts have been any curved sections or moving parts.

His model has every single detail from the overhead luggage compartments to the metal carts in the galley to the landing gear. Just going through the pictures one can appreciate how time consuming the process is. Indeed, Iaconi-Stewart devoted an entire summer just to the seats (20 minutes for an economy seat, four to six hours for business class, and eight hours for first class). He designed the engines in about a month and assembled them in four. The tail had to be rebuilt three times.

"I'm fortunate to have parents willing to give me a fair amount of latitude," Iaconi-Stewart said to Wired.

When this project is finished, probably early this year, Iaconi-Stewart plans to build an even bigger model.