AA to get new colors?

[Horscht]

I cant wait to see there new livery!

American Airlines Considers Change in Oldest Jet Livery


By Mary Schlangenstein - May 11, 2012 6:55 AM PT



American Airlines is studying whether to adopt a new look for its jets, which sport the oldest livery among major U.S. carriers and an iconic polished-aluminum finish in use since the 1930s.



“We have made a decision to embark on a modernization of our brand,” Chief Commercial Officer Virasb Vahidi said in an interview. “That could culminate with a potentially new livery and logo -- that’s something we are evaluating.”

New planes that AMR Corp. (AAMRQ)’s American will begin receiving in 2013 offer a chance to update its red, white and blue stripes on the hull and tail logo with red and blue A’s and a stylized eagle. AMR has set a goal of exiting bankruptcy this year, while US Airways Group Inc. (LCC) is considering a possible takeover bid.




American’s livery has been in use since 1967, outlasting mergers, failures and shifting tastes across the industry. A new exterior also may mean dropping the signature bare-metal skin that dates to the era of propeller-driven airliners, which the third-largest U.S. airline has called a fuel-saver because an unpainted plane weighs less.



The brand review began about 18 months ago, Vahidi said. That was before Fort Worth, Texas-based AMR’s Chapter 11 filing on Nov. 29 and US Airways’ pursuit of American, which includes signing labor accords with the airline’s unions. US Airways told the unions the American name would survive in a merger.


Vahidi didn’t give a timetable for a decision on whether American will change its planes’ exteriors. The cabin upgrades announced May 9 for wide-body planes used on international routes are part of American’s brand update, he said.



American consulted customers and employees, among others, as part of a “very detailed” assessment of the airline’s brand equity, or the idea that a well-known name can generate more revenue than products from a lesser-known brand, Vahidi said.



“People recognized it across the world,” he said of the brand. “It has a lot of equity in the marketplace.”



Aircraft makeovers have been common in the U.S. industry in the past decade.



United Continental Holdings Inc. (UAL) combined the paint schemes of predecessors United Airlines and Continental Airlines Inc. when those carriers merged in 2010. Delta Air Lines Inc. updated its livery four times since 1997, and its purchase of Northwest Airlines Corp. in 2008 marked the end of the smaller carrier’s trademark red tails.



Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV) abandoned its traditional orange, red and gold livery in 2001 to add blue, and US Airways changed its design following a 2005 merger with America West Airlines.


Deliveries of American’s first Boeing Co. (BA) 787 Dreamliners in 2014’s fourth quarter pose a challenge to the airline’s traditional metal-finish exteriors: The new jets’ fuselage of composite-plastic materials can’t be polished like the aluminum skin of the carrier’s other Boeings.



American “is doing a lot of studying” to determine what the Dreamliner livery will look like, Vahidi said.



After taking Airbus SAS A300s in 1988, the airline initially painted them gray because of the planemaker’s concern that the uncovered aluminum would corrode, said Tim Smith, a spokesman. American later developed procedures that convinced Airbus the aluminum could be polished and corrosion prevented, he said. The airline no longer flies that model.
Deliveries begin next year for the first of 460 Airbus and Boeing narrow-body planes American ordered in 2011 to refresh its main jet fleet of 610 aircraft.



Smaller planes flown by the American Eagle regional airline are painted white and feature the same fuselage stripes as on American’s jets, with an eagle on the tail.

[akerosid]

I think it's an opportune time to do it, BUT the big fly in the ointment here is US Airways; if - as now seems widely expected - US makes a successful bid for AA, then that change might be delayed; of course, the new airline is likely to take the AA name, but given the expense involved (and incurred by the current leadership, during a Ch11 process - good timing?), there will inevitably be a delay.

Obviously, I hope that AA does make a change, but in fairness, it has to be said that their colours are simple, yet classic; if an AA aircraft is clean, it looks terrific.

http://jetphotos.net/viewphoto.php?id=7296978&nseq=4

If not ... it's embarrassing.

For a fleet of that size (which will obviously be a lot larger if the US takeover goes ahead, but presumably the current AA mgmt aren't factoring that in!), it needs to be fairly simple; you don't want to be splashing out a massive amount per aircraft on a fleet of that size. I still think they'll go with the polished silver fuselage as a base and just an alteration of the standard blue and red. I doubt that it will be a massively revolutionary design.

[Foxtrot]

Personally, I have nothing against AA's current livery. I think it's one of those few liveries that stands up well to modern times, but if it does go ahead with a change, I hope it does keep some of the bare metal polished finish.

[Gabriel]

Originally Posted by Foxtrot

Personally, I have nothing against AA's current livery. I think it's one of those few liveries that stands up well to modern times, but if it does go ahead with a change, I hope it does keep some of the bare metal polished finish.

Bare metal polished finish will be hard to keep as more planes have more plastic and less metal.

[IberiaMD-87]

The current livery of American Airlines is (in my opinion) one of the most valuable assets of this company and a masterpiece of classic, timeless livery-design.

Regards

[seahawk]

Let me guess

1. base color: white
2. larger titles on the fuselage
3. strange tail design

[Foxtrot]

Originally Posted by Gabriel

Bare metal polished finish will be hard to keep as more planes have more plastic and less metal.

I meant on the current planes (like the 737NGs), not the new ones .

[Felipe Garcia]

They got rid of the polished metal on the ex. Reno planes and they didn't look as nice. It was surely a unique look, but not the best.

[LUNN]

With the white engines on the 787 they better bring in white fuselage paint.

[Eric Diffoot]

Hopefully they don't radically change it, maybe apply the grey color on the tails and engines to the entire fuselage. One of the most classic schemes.

[TeeVee]

if it aint broke don't fix it. like may people think, i too enjoy the classic and timeless polished body. sure the cheap composite airbuses and expensive composite 787's will have to be painted, but leave the rest of the fleet alone. worried about brand recognition? no one will mistake the ginormous "AA" on the side regardless of paint or polish.

[saupatel]

Originally Posted by LUNN

With the white engines on the 787 they better bring in white fuselage paint.

That brings another question to mind. Why do the 787 engines have to be only white in color? I was really annoyed to see the white engine on the Air India jets. That really ruined a cool livery.

[decker1993]

They could keep livery and just paint the composite hull white, or light gray, or silver. Might not look as good as polished metal. Metallic gray paint might work for hull but would it be expensive?

[LUNN]

The all white engines (nacelles and pylons) apparently offer better performence thus reducing fuel consumption, but I hope some airlines opt to paint their engines another colour, BTW initially they were also meant to be pale grey but that option has been dropped as well, otherwise ANA livery would have been perfect.

[TeeVee]

ummm ok, lemme get this straight: white engine covers and pylons give better performance? is that like my car goes faster because it's red?

[Gabriel]

Originally Posted by TeeVee

ummm ok, lemme get this straight: white engine covers and pylons give better performance? is that like my car goes faster because it's red?

It works with Ferraris.

[TeeVee]

so true! how could i be so daft?

[LUNN]

Boeing say that white helps reduce some kind of drag over other colours.

[decker1993]

Originally Posted by LUNN

Boeing say that white helps reduce some kind of drag over other colours.

Oh really? Where is source? If that were true, then all airliners would be painting their engines white.

[Foxtrot]

Unless white paint had some microscopic texture differences over other colours I don't see how it would help to reduce laminar flow drag. But if that were true, like decker stated above all airlines would paint their planes' engines white.