China Airlines is the national carrier of the Republic of China (Taiwan) and one of its two largest airlines. Unlike the majority of modern brand logos, the China Airlines logo has been growing not simpler but more complicated with time.
On September 14, 2010, China Airlines signed an agreement to join the Skyteam airline alliance. In honor of this event, the carrier redesigned its logo and changed the font of its name.
In 2014, China Airlines announced its “NextGen” plan, which included an upgrade and expansion of its fleet, a major rebranding involving famous designers, and new uniforms for flight attendants.
Today China Airlines operates scheduled flights to 70 destinations on four continents. The main market for flights is Japan, with 14 routes and more than 180 flights per week.
What is China Airlines?
China Airlines is the name of the Taiwan’s national airline, based at Taoyuan International Airport. Established in 1959, today the company operates more than 1,4 thousand flights per week, including 91 cargo flights, connecting more than a hundred cities in different parts of the world.
The original design was dominated by the lettering “CAL” in dark blue. The letters also formed a stylized plane, the “C” being its front end and the “L” being its tail.
Even despite the serifs, the design looked rather laconic for its era.
The design team decided to load the emblem with a flower. It was placed next to the tail of the plane. Also, a large dark blue circle was added in the background, while the company name grew white.
This time, the design became even more complicated as the flower was colored in multiple shades of pink and red. It now looked soft and beautiful, although we cannot say that the image fitted modern minimalist design trends.
The company name was given in an italicized type. There was also a horizontal line in light blue below.
While the light blue line has disappeared, the China Airlines logo has not grown much simpler. The flower is still there, although it is now placed to the left of the company name. The italics have been straightened. Also, all the letters are now of the same height, while on the previous version, the initial was capitalized.
The stable uppercase lettering from the primary China Airlines logo is set in a sharp geometric typeface with straight bars and interesting small elements in their ends. The closest fonts to the one, used in this insignia, are, probably, Romanica Medium, or Quell Contrast Bold, with some modifications of the characters’ contours.
As for the color palette of the China Airlines, it is based on the combination of pink and blue, with several shades of smooth and deep pink used for the small emblem, and a solid intense blue — for the lettering. The color scheme of the company’s badge looks very elegant, and at the same time evokes a sense of Hight quality and excellence.