Via a post on a forum for former US Marine Corps personnel, I came across a photograph of a Boeing 747 of All Nippon Airways in Japan, painted with Pokémon motifs. Intrigued, I looked for more information, and a friend in Japan sent me this picture (click it for a larger view).
ANA even has a special page on their Web site with descriptions of the various aircraft they’ve painted in the Pokémon theme. I thought it was a nice touch for their younger customers. I don’t think you’d find a US airline being so whimsical and playful with their aircraft!
Peter
Heh- I've actually flown on THAT airplane from Haneda to Naha, Okinawa. The ONLY US airline that does anything like that is Southwest, and they painted one bird to look like Shamu the whale.
Back in the '70s, Alexander Calder had a relationship with Braniff Airways. He did a whimsical job on a number of their aircraft.
I remember seeing one of these planes at an airport when I was a child. It was an eye-opener!
Here's a link to a fan page.
http://www.braniffpages.com/calder/calder.html
Rich
LOL, I must point my daughter in this direction. She'll squeeeeee…
Alaska Air Group has many themed aircraft. Here's a link:
http://www.alaskaair.com/as/www2/company/Fleet/Fleet.asp?type=737-900
I don't know why, but it feels very strange that I'm about to call a couple of 747s cute, but I am. They are teh kewt. They are cute on wheels. They are so adorable I want to put them in my pocket.
When I flew from Tokyo to Taipei a couple years back, we flew on a Nippon Air jet painted in a Hello Kitty motif. I have pictures around here somewhere. Honestly, I think Nippon is the best airline I've ever flown on. The majority of US domestic carriers could take a lesson from them.
…is it wrong that I can name EVERY SINGLE Pokemon on those planes?
It takes commitment to paint an aircraft like that, even basic white and stripes runs to an awful lot of money. This one sure looks sharp, and they deserve credit for it.
Jim