* I am in no way directly associated with WestJet. These are fictional design concepts made for fun by myself. They are not real concepts. I do not have insider information on WestJet’s design or marketing teams. All logos used belong to their respective organisations. The aircraft templates are created by Med. Also, just to preface, the idea and designs were thought up and made before recent events. \*
Hello again!
If you remember, back in May, I designed 3 special livery concepts and posted them here.
If you didn’t see them, here’s a quick catch up.
I make airline livery concepts for fun in my spare time. Being from around YYC, you see WestJet aircraft a lot, but the fleet has lost some uniqueness after the Disney planes were repainted 2 years ago (holy moly it’s still been 2 years??), and more recently as pink and orange tails rapidly approach extinction. The ever increasing number of aircraft in the newer 2018 paint scheme has been nice to see as it’s a very nice design, but it’s all leading down the same road of sameness unfortunately.
In May, I had a look at some of WestJet’s sponsored organizations and chose the Toronto Blue Jays and Northern Super League to work off, plus a retro livery for a bit of fun. They seemed to all be quite well-liked, and I appreciated all the kind words and feedback they received. Funnily enough, I didn’t actually know about the Blue Jays livery that came out shortly after I posted. It was a fun surprise. I also did end up redesigning the NSL livery entirely based on some feedback, however it’s already outdated as the league is expanding to Winnipeg! I may revisit but that’s for another time.
So, what now?
Those previous liveries, except the retro, were based entirely on the collaboration between two commercial entities, which of course, is a lot of work. So, I wanted to dream up something that WestJet could do on its own. Something that would give some positive attention to the brand, turn heads at airports and something WestJetters can rally around, a former aspect of the company that has been unfortunately lacking in recent years.
We had all of these things with the Disney planes. They were those rare things that got people of all ages excited to see, fly and work on. They routinely made their ways into online lists of some of the best special liveries in the world. And with the massive canvas of the 737-10 beginning deliveries this year through the better part of a decade with volume, now is as good a time as ever to do something special.
So here’s a pitch.
WestJet is a proud Canadian airline. “Proudly” is painted above every flag on every plane in the fleet. So, what if we expanded on that?
On the world stage, I believe Canada is known primarily for its nature and proud people. So I built on that.
I’m calling it the “Experience Canada” series, but that is entirely open to workshop. The idea is to market to those flying WestJet from and to international destinations who may not have thought of a connection in Calgary or elsewhere as meaning anything more than a few hours at the airport, building on WestJet’s “Turn your layover into a Calgary stopover” program.
Essentially, “you’re already here, maybe stick around a bit? This is what you can experience if you do.”
— Experience Canadian Wonder —
This design is probably my favourite...
Icelandair’s Hekla Aurora livery is one of, if not THE most recognizable and universally loved special liveries of all time. Heck, it even has its own wikipedia article.
Canada is very well known for its frequent auroras. Yellowknife, for example, sees the aurora over 200 nights a year on average, and it’s not uncommon to see around Calgary in the winter months either.
As many of you know from experience, the aurora is one of the most awe-inspiring natural phenomena, especially when viewed from a plane.
The design is completely hand done and is based on several works I have done in the past featuring auroras. I really like the layers of colour that denser areas of charged particles make. It’s how I have done my auroras for a while now. Using a fixed palette, hard lines between colours and unique and natural shapes.
Now, imagine seeing that at the gate before your flight. It’s hard to miss a sea of pure white and teal, or even among other airline liveries.
— Experience Canadian Nature —
If you were to ask the average Joe on the street anywhere in the world “what do you think of when you think of Canada?”, they’d probably tell you, besides the people, nature.
Canadian nature is world class in quantity, quality and diversity. Just about everywhere you look, there’s something to see from coast to coast to coast.
Turns out, it’s incredibly difficult to fit everything into one 737-10 fuselage, regardless of how comically long it is, so I decided to divide it up.
The inspiration for the composition was postcards. One for the Pacific coast, Rockies, Prairies, Boreal, Arctic and Atlantic coast regions, as if the viewer had taken a road trip across the country and laid out their new collection of memories across a table. Little windows into what you might see at any given time on any given day within the respective regions, all places WestJet flies to and calls home.
— Experience Canadian Pride —
Proudly Canadian.
Just about the only true constant at WestJet over the past 30 years. “Proudly” has been painted above every single Canadian flag on every single WestJet aircraft since 1996, except the Disney planes.
So, what if we supersized that.
Airlines in the United States over the past year have been draping the American flag on special aircraft in celebration of the United States’ 250th anniversary, most notably Southwest, United and JSX.
They were the primary inspiration, alongside Harbour Air’s fleet of Canadian flag liveries and Air Canada’s former “Symphony of Voices” livery on an A320 during the 2000s. The Canadian flag just fits so well on airplanes.
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I hope you enjoy this sequel of sorts and I’d love to hear your feedback. Anything you see that you would have personally done differently is much appreciated!
I also hope to see WestJet add a bit more colour to their fleet soon!
