Air Canada A-320

AC A-320 in newish colours. On approach to Toronto Pearson. Launched in October 2004, here's what the press release says about the new look for Air Canada:

"The strength of Air Canada’s brand and red maple leaf is recognized world wide. In redesigning the livery, we wanted to leverage the existing strengths while communicating a new Air Canada – more flexible, more dynamic, more contemporary," said Claude Salzberger, Creative Director for FutureBrand Worldwide, the company hired to design the livery, and one of the original designers involved in the carrier’s last complete makeover in 1994. "The industry has moved away from a pure corporate look to one that is closer to the customer, and that is what we have achieved with the new livery. We’ve taken advantage of the latest technology in paint, masks and decals. This couldn’t have been created ten years ago. The technology just wasn’t there."

The restyling includes a new and innovative design that mixes art and technology to reflect the unique and dynamic personality of the airline. The design showcases a new expression of the familiar red maple leaf and plays with a refreshed palette of colors to integrate the aircraft’s exterior and create an overall more comfortable in-flight experience. Air Canada’s refreshed colour palette embodies the nature of Canada: Canadian Red, Silver Sky, Forest Mist, Maple Red, Pacific Blue and Arctic Green.

An evolution of the natural leaf design in use today, the new tail features a dynamic red maple leaf that captures the plane’s energy when in motion and changing light conditions. The Air Canada Maple Leaf in Canadian Red is complemented by a graphic dot pattern representation called the "Frosted Leaf." Rendered in Forest Mist green, it is designed to evoke the natural freshness of a Canadian forest after the first frost. The artistic expression of the new design is countered with technology: An innovative, iridescent paint is used to accentuate the aircraft’s aerodynamic lines and integrate tail and fuselage. The overall design, the first of its kind, challenges the established language of aircraft livery design, while retaining the qualities inherent in a flag carrier.