The influence of business models and carrier nationality on airline liveries: An analysis of 637 airlines

This paper reports on the findings of a visual content analysis of 637 global airline liveries. It identifies the most common design features and reveals that the use of particular colours, colour combinations, visual motifs, typefaces, and design characteristics vary both by the nature of an airline's operation (whether full-service, low cost, regional, charter, or cargo) and its geographic origin. The significance of the findings for current and future practices of airline marketing and corporate identity management is discussed.

► This article examines the visual content of 637 global airline liveries. ► It identifies the most common design features. ► It demonstrates that airline business models affect livery choice. ► It explores the extent to which liveries vary by geographic region.