Aer Lingus has unveiled its refreshed branding with updated logo and new aircraft livery, which, according to the airline, “reflects the airline’s position as a modern and contemporary Irish brand that competes on the international stage”.
The new logo retains but restyles the iconic shamrock, “adding a tilt to symbolise dynamism and speed, with heart-shaped leaves reflecting the warmth and hospitality of the brand”. Guests will see four shamrocks on the new Aer Lingus aircraft livery. The first is within the new logo, the second sits on the tailfin, a third welcomes guests at the door, and “a final surprise on the wingtip is in prime position for capturing on social media”.
The Aer Lingus logo font has changed to ‘diodrum’ and the dominant colour is teal. The body of the new look Aer Lingus aircraft will be white with a teal-coloured tail and engines. The teal undercarriage means that Aer Lingus will be instantly recognisable to those on the ground. The brand refresh is being rolled out across all brand platforms, with a new website design and new app design. It will be visible across all guest touchpoints, from check-in to boarding gate and on to the aircraft.
The refresh is part of the airline’s ambitious growth plan that will see Aer Lingus increase its North Atlantic fleet from 17 to 30 aircraft by 2023. Overall, Aer Lingus plans to grow its A330 fleet to 16 aircraft (from 13 in 2017) and invest in 14 new A321LRs to provide capacity for growth across the Atlantic and within Europe.
Sean Doyle, Chief Executive, said: “Aer Lingus is a modern Irish international success story, built on hard work, enterprise and the commitment of our people. We are delighted to unveil our brand refresh, which comes more than 20 years after Aer Lingus last invested in new brand livery, and reflects our position as a modern, contemporary airline. Aer Lingus has had exceptional success in recent years: adding new routes, new aircraft, new jobs and new opportunities for colleagues and guests alike.
“The refreshed brand reflects an airline that connects those living in Montreal to Marseilles; in Berlin to Boston; as well as those living in Cork to Croatia. The benefit for Ireland of being at the fulcrum of such connections is considerable and we in Aer Lingus are determined to realise this potential for Ireland.
“We have ambitious plans for our future and the years ahead, yet we are aware of challenges facing the modern industry and thus investment in our new brand identity and livery; our new uniforms that will be unveiled later this year; and our fleet expansion are considered investments in the future of Aer Lingus to enable us realise our ambition to be the leading value carrier across the North Atlantic.”
Mike Rutter, Chief Operating Officer, said: “The Aer Lingus brand has evolved significantly over the last number of years. Since 2015, we have invested significantly in our business, improving our value proposition and overall guest experience and becoming Ireland’s only 4-star airline. Innovations that we have introduced include the roll-out of wi-fi on our A330s, automated check-in and bag drop at Dublin Airport, Business Class improvement with fully lie-flat beds, and Economy Class catering upgrades. We have also enhanced our performance to become the most punctual airline at Dublin Airport.
“We conducted extensive guest research across Ireland, Europe and North America to inform every key stage of the process to ensure that the brand is reflective of our value carrier positioning. This research confirmed the importance of our shamrock – the Irish emblem has been at the heart of the Aer Lingus brand for more than 80 years, and we made the shamrock ‘hearts’ more pronounced to reflect our hospitality and service.
“The new look Aer Lingus livery consolidates our position as a modern, contemporary Irish airline on the international stage, but also allows guests who have always loved our brand to maintain a positive affiliation.”
The new look Aer Lingus brand has been introduced across the app, website, guest check-in, and boarding gates. The brand refresh is being delivered in keeping with Aer Lingus’ value carrier model, as part of the company’s business as usual aircraft painting programme. All new aircraft will be delivered sporting the new livery and the updating of digital assets has been done “in a highly cost-effective manner”.
The A330 (A330-300 series aircraft, EI-EDY, St Munchin) was unveiled at an event in the Aer Lingus Hangar 6 at Dublin Airport, where it had been painted on-site. The A320 (A320-200 series aircraft, EI-CVA, St Schira.) flew from Shannon Airport, where it had been painted. The new liveried A330 aircraft will take to the skies for the first time on Friday 18th January 2019, operating flight EI105, where it will be met by a reception in New York John F. Kennedy International Airport.
Brand Refresh Facts
- More than 50 shamrock designs were considered as part of the brand refresh process.
- Hundreds of items across every aspect of the business were audited for the refreshed brand identity to improve the guest experience. The list included everything from the Aer Lingus check-in desks, to airport signage, to lounges, to onboard menus and everything else in between.
- An aircraft is usually repainted every seven to eight years.
- When an aircraft goes in for painting, the critical areas that aren’t going to be painted are protected. The fuselage and wings are metal and stripper is applied to remove the paint followed by primer. Composite areas, such as the tailplane, are sanded down. The aircraft is then washed down and a base coat and top coat are applied followed by a clear coat.
- A wide-body aircraft takes about 10 days and about 850 litres of paint, while a narrow-body takes between seven and eight days and uses around 500 litres. The thickness of the paint can vary slightly so it is measured and its effect on the aircraft weight is taken into An Airbus A330 can weigh up to 233,000kg, while an Airbus A320 can be 73,500kg.
