A few months ago, I covered the new Riyadh Air livery, and how that in principal it’s one of the most elegant new liveries in the skies, but it the logotype on the fuselage was a little too dominant for an elegant, premium carrier. Well, it seems like they’ve listened, as not only their new…
Read MoreSaudia relaunches ‘new’ retro brand and it works in stark contrast to Riyadh Air
Now those with a good memory will notice that the announcement of Saudia’s new brand feels a little bit familiar. That’s for good reason. Saudia’s latest livery is actually a previous incarnation of the brand image from the 1980s. A time when futurism was based on a mix between brutalism and pixelated screen technology, which…
Read MoreGood things come in small packages. Meet Bermudair
You will be forgiven for not knowing of this new Bermuda-based startup, but it’s certainly going to be getting a lot of attention in the coming months. The airline has been a long time in the making. Bermudair actually comes from Adam Scott—the same CEO who wanted to start Odyssey, the all-business class airline that…
Read MoreBehind the scenes of the Air Tahiti brand
TheDesignAir often references how colourful, vibrant and culturally diverse the Pacific is, and why its given birth to some of the most vibrant and exciting airline brands, liveries and uniforms in the skies. We take a look at Air Tahiti, one of the bigger brands in the region, but often overlooked by its long-haul rival…
Read MoreAir India rebrand loses itself in a bid to modernise, and interiors while upgraded, sadly fail to deliver on brand promise
I think most of us were surprised that when Vistara and Air India were going to merge, Air India was going to be the dominant brand, considering how considered and elegant Vistara’s brand image was in comparison to the crumbling image of a legacy carrier from yesteryear. But in hindsight, as Air India has been…
Read MoreAll hail bold liveries. JetBlue launches first ever full livery refresh with striking new design.
It seems we’re seeing a resurgence of colour in the aviation industry. While early 2000’s saw a wave of cost effective ‘Eurowhite’ liveries which were anything but inspiring, this month has seen not just Riyadh Air launch a bold new colourful look, but now JetBlue joins the ranks of refreshingly striking all-over liveries. Somewhat reminiscent…
Read MoreRiyadh Air launches livery and brand video ahead of AIX
Riyadh Air, the new Saudi Arabian airline, headed up by veteran CEO Tony Douglas has just unveiled the first of two liveries that will adorn the airline’s fleet on Instagram earlier today. The airline has certainly decided to stand out with a bold, metallic purple look that will draw attention as it touches down to…
Read MoreAlaska Airlines launches new ‘Salmon’ Aircraft with a striking native design fit for the 21st Century.
Alaska Airlines has had a long-time relationship with the Alaskan Salmon, In fact, in 1932, the airline took its first flight between Anchorage and Bristol Bay, home of the world’s most extensive sockeye salmon run. Since then its constantly been a part of distributing salmon across the States, so celebrating this ironic Alaskan export makes…
Read MoreEmirates refreshes livery design with updated 3D paint effect
The update to a livery for an airline with a large fleet is a costly, and arduous undertaking. A dramatic shift in livery and brand can create inconsistency for years while a fleet is repainted, and too subtle a shift can be seen as folly. But sometimes the arrival of a new sub-fleet can bring…
Read MoreHoly Deckchairs Batman! Condor reveals stripey new livery and brand image
Condor revealed perhaps the bravest new livery and brand image today we’ve seen in a decade. Actively opting to shun its previous looks and celebrate its leisure market, the airline has adopted a bold new, deck chair and beach towel inspired (I kid you not) livery. No, it’s not April 1st, and we did have…
Read MoreANA relaunches AirJapan as new mid-market carrier in 2023
Following ANA’s announcement that it was going to launch a new airline brand back in 2020, details have emerged today of how this brand will look. Dubbed ‘AirJapan’, ANA’s new carrier is “a new airline brand for medium-haul international routes.” Air Japan is actually just one part of ANA’s transformation of its business model to…
Read MoreA tale of two tails: Alaska Airlines’ new livery by Teague
Alaska Airlines isn’t shy of special liveries. In fact, its first ‘Salmon Thirty Salmon’ livery – which celebrated the airline’s involvement with the shipment of the precious and tasty cargo –was so popular it returned in 2012. While the airline isn’t the only US carrier to adorn their aircraft with marine life, with Southwest also…
Read MoreRyanair updates its livery. Oops, sorry, we mean Icelandair.
To be honest, we’re not really that sure why Icelandair has done this, but it has decided to update and refresh its once elegant brand, simplifying and stripping back originality. Instead opting for a low-cost looking approach with large billboard titles and basic graphic tails. What’s more baffling is how Icelandair have positioned the dramatic…
Read MoreCould Northern Pacific take flight? If so, the Pacific will see another exciting livery in the skies
You won’t be blamed if you’ve not heard of Northern Pacific, however in the past few days it’s been making some waves as it seemingly is starting to ramp up its operations. There’s discussion of a launch event in Anchorage later in the month, where we’ll get to understand a little bit more about this…
Read MoreEmirates adds one more colourful Expo 2020 design to its fleet
Emirates, the Premier Partner and Official Airline of Expo 2020 Dubai, has just revealed yet another bold head-turning A380 livery. This time, dedicated to further carrying the delayed global event’s messages worldwide. However, it’s not the first livery to support the Expo. Eagle eyes may have noticed a circular pattern on many of their fleet.…
Read MoreBritish Airways brings its sustainability programme to life with new Livery
British Airways has just launched ‘BA Better World’, its new sustainability programme. While many airlines have already got active sustainability programmes, the airline said this marked a further commitment to put sustainability at the heart of its business. It has ambitions from reducing emissions and waste and positively contributing to the communities it serves, to creating a great place for people to…
Read MoreNorse reveals new livery and logo, but what do we think?
From the embers of Norwegian’s long-haul ambitions comes a new LCC determined to pick up where the now much smaller airline left off. Today saw the grand reveal of the carrier’s new brand image and livery, which will be sure to get investors excited prior to the anticipated Spring 2022 launch. “We strongly believe that…
Read MoreWith the end of ‘Ohana By Hawaiian, we sadly lose one great livery in the Pacific
Hawaiian Airlines announced last week that unfortunately it will not restart its ‘Ohana by Hawaiian passenger service between Honolulu and Moloka‘i and Lāna‘i as well as its statewide ATR freighter cargo service. This draws a close to this unique daughter brand of Hawaiian Airlines, and with it, the striking livery designed by Sig Zane and son…
Read MoreAir Canada reveals latest Retrojet paint scheme on the A220
Last week, Airbus opened its paint hangar doors in Mirabel and let us peek inside where the latest aircraft is being painted for Air Canada. Instead of the usual black and white ‘Raccoon mask’ livery that Air Canada is now sporting across its fleet, the airline has opted to nod to its history, revealing its…
Read MoreQatar Airways launches elegant new special livery to celebrate the World Cup in 2022
For the foreseeable future, we’re going to be seeing fewer special liveries while airlines try to save cash and focus on a service return, so those rare few that do roll out will certainly garner some attention now. Qatar Airways is one of the first in this period to reveal a special livery, and naturally,…
Read MoreOMG, OWG launches brand image and we’re a bit … WOW
Nolinor the well known charter outfit from Canada has created a scheduled offshoot low cost carrier called ‘Off We Go’ or OWG as the livery would have us know. Apparently launching end of August it’s determined to brush off the Coronavirus stigma facing the travel sector and start affordable flights from its home in Quebec…
Read MoreAegean deliver considered, concise brand image on the inside and out
Aegean, the national Greek airline has just unveiled a new brand identity, livery and aircraft interiors designed by Priestmangoode. The London-based studio worked closely with the airline to develop a vision for the new brand, building on an airline that already has a decent reputation for service and hard product. This project encompassed pretty much…
Read MoreEastern Airlines hits a home run with fantastic Braniff-esque brand image
[Updated] Last week we mentioned in a story that we hoped that in 2020 airlines would start to break the mould and start thinking differently about liveries and brand image and it seems that resurrected Eastern Airlines has done exactly that. Announced yesterday, the new conceptual design for the decades-old carrier – designed by Mechanica…
Read MoreLothansa? The challenge of having similar tail fins
It seems the week before Christmas brought a challenge from LOT Polish Airlines to Lufthansa regarding the German flag carrier’s somewhat contentious new livery. The Polish carrier draws issue with the fact Lufthansa’s reimagined tail fin has an uncanny resemblance to theirs. While we agree there are similarities, to our our trained eye, they are…
Read MoreAnnouncing the winners of TheDesignAir awards 2019
TheDesignAir is thrilled to announce the 2019 award winners as voted for by our esteemed judging panel and our readers. Year after year, we see more improvements and enhancements across the passenger experience, from narrow to wide bodies to lounges and airports around the globe. We showcase the 2019 winners here.
Read MoreCondor brings back its older logo to its tail fins, and we have to admit, we love it
Condor has started to bring back its own logo to the tails of its fleet. At the end of last week, the new design was unveiled to the employees, and the weekend saw the first Boeing 767 with the registration D-ABUF making its first flight in the new Condor look to Cancun in Mexico. In…
Read MoreStar Bores. How not to do a themed safety video. (Sorry United)
Great news! United Airlines has just released a themed Star Wars safety video. Jumping on the Star Wars bandwagon (which already includes Virgin Atlantic, ANA and Latam, to name just a few) the carrier is celebrating the launch of the Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker by releasing a safety video, special livery and Mileage…
Read MoreVirgin Atlantic gets the Star Wars bug, alongside LATAM, with special livery aircraft
It’s a real battle of do you prefer the Dark Side or the rebel Alliance this week as Virgin Atlantic and LATAM both reveal special limited edition liveries to support the opening of Star Wars ‘Galaxy’s Edge’ experience at Walt Disney World Resort. While LATAM have showcased their stormtrooper themed 777, Virgin Atlantic have themed one…
Read MoreBrussels Airlines Launches Bruegel, Its Sixth Belgian Icon
The chances are by now if you travel around Europe, you’ve probably seen one of Brussels Airlines ‘Icon’ aircraft at some point over the past few years. After honouring Tintin in 2015, followed by Magritte, the Red Devils, Tomorrowland and the Smurfs, Brussels Airlines has just unveiled another Belgian Icon, a unique aircraft inspired by…
Read MoreUnited Launches Refreshed Livery, Strengthening The Brand, But Not Exactly Setting The Skies Alight
Meet the new U.N.I.T.E.D… oh no wait, that’s just the unfortunate window/logotype placement. United have revealed their latest livery, not on one of the grounded 737 Max aircraft, but one of the 737-800’s with scimitar winglets. “The design is a visual representation of United’s ongoing brand evolution while staying true to the history it has…
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