Australia’s Qantas is updating the iconic flying Kangaroo livery on its aircraft with the first aircraft unveiled on 27 October. Qantas is the national airline of Australia and the Australian people consider the airline to be a symbol of the country.
What is a Kangaroo?
The Kangaroo is a marsupial which is native to Australia featuring large hind legs to propel itself by leaping or hopping. It appears on Australia’s coat of arms, on some currency and as the emblem of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). Its young gestate in its mother’s pouch and are called Joey’s.
Image by PanBK via Wikimedia Commons.
Evolution of a Kangaroo
The Qantas Kangaroo has gone through only five iterations since it was introduced and some of these can be seen below.
The 2016 Update
The update is fairly extensive though it may look like not much has changed for the outsider. The titles have a new font and style and for the first time the airline name appears on the underside of the aircraft. The Kangaroo has been ‘streamlined’ and I notice that it’s lost its forelimbs or hands which is rather a strange choice. The tail logo will appear on the inside of the wingtips so those photos taken out the window will show the logo.
My favourite change is the fact the original Qantas jet age Kangaroo will feature under the cockpit windows along with the aircraft name. That was an inspired choice with a real sense of history and I like that.
What do you think of the new Qantas livery? Please leave any comments below. Thanks for reading!
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Most changes are an assault on tradition. Quantas is no different here. However, how changes are made is the key to their acceptance.
I think that the new livery is just about as far as Quantas can go before the design is incomprehensible; the design will not resemble a kangaroo.
On a personal note, I am such a Quantas fan that anything they do is OK with me.
Has Australia ever done anything wrong? LOL
Your Yank friend
Haha! Yes, I can’t see them making further changes, otherwise it’s going to look very strange, so I agree with you there! Glad to hear you like Qantas – and Australia! Thanks for the comment 🙂
Saw this about Qantas livery. Couldn’t make out the difference, but now I see. For the general flyer it should be more evident else not worth. Only us avgeeks would appreciate the subtle differences you point out!
Oh, believe me, Australian people will know the difference as well. It is subtle enough though, I agree!