B.A. Blunder

**andron234** · 01-06-2016 23:28

It's not often I "Hate" something on first sight, But in this case I'll make an exception, and apparently Mrs Thatcher agrees with me, So what am I talking about? British Airways "ethnic" design tailfins logos Have a look at this "Fly the flag airplane"Attachment 184685

To me it looks like pure graffiti, I know lots of you will know it's an old story, That has been thankfully rectified, I just wonder how much this blunder cost the traveling public?
Attachment 184686

Do any of you guys hate/like these British Airways World Art liveries? Have I yet to discover the worst tail logo, what's your opinion?

**Tonx** · 01-07-2016 14:42

Crumbs ... The Utopia Tails Livery. Unveiled at the wrong time in April 1997 using the wrong designs and by the wrong person. The wrong designs (IMHO) at the unveiling were Concorde G-BOAG / variation of the Union Flag or Chatham Dockyard colours (later modified) and Boeing 747-436 G-BNLO in the Ndebele version 1 colours - possibly the ugliest and clunkiest of all of the designs. So this meant that there was a mixture of something which looked a bit like the Negus & Negus livery and a gawd-awful looking taste of what was to come. As unveiled by Bob Ayling who is still on record as BA's most hated chairman at a time when all of BA's catering operations were being third-partied out to LSG.

On 29th June 1999 British Airways repainted Boeing 767-336ER G-BNWV with a redesigned Chatham Dockyard colour scheme for HM The Queen to travel on during a royal visit ... Then the following day (I have the paper cutting at home still) announced that they were to dispense with the Utopia Tails. The final ones were carried in service by two BA Regional Dash 8-300s and were phased out by November 2002.

My opinion on the matter was that these were created for the forces of darkness and external influences to be the undoing of ... Had Robert Ayling not turned BA into a back-stabbing arrogant nightmare of a company which is the reason he became so hated I reckon that this unique idea may very well have taken off. Interesting to note how in 2007 Pakistan International Airlines adopted a similar idea ... Which lasted until their final Airbus A310-324s were repainted in 2013. What BA should have done was waited a few more months until after the General Election of 1997 to unveil this idea of theirs though there still may have been no pleasing Margaret Thatcher!

Favourite World Tail - by far. Benyhone / Scotland. Tartan design with a name that translates as Mountain of the Eagles.