Brussels Airlines to select next Belgian Icon livery
October 21, 2024
Brussels Airlines is one step closer to selecting its next ‘Belgian Icon’ livery, a unique series of paint schemes designed to pay tribute to Belgian culture.
With a contest launched in August attracting 900 entries, an internal jury selected 15 finalists to put to a public vote; ultimately receiving over 50,000 engagements. “As the Belgian home carrier, we want to proudly present our country to the world, and our Belgian Icons play an important part in that strategy,” explained Brussels Airlines head of marketing Michel Moriaux. “The design contest challenged people in Belgium to reflect on what makes us proud and who we are as a nation. We’re glad to have sparked that discussion”.
Entries receiving the top five number of votes were then put to a jury deliberation, which included two Brussels Airlines members: CEO Dorothea von Boxberg and Moriaux. Jury members were not informed how many public votes each scheme had received. The airline will formally reveal the winner on 5 November.
With each special scheme adorning a singular aircraft for approximately five years, the first special livery, ‘Rackham’ – the shark submarine from comic book icon Tintin’s ‘Red Rackham’s Treasure’ adventure – was first introduced in 2015. Subsequent Belgian Icons have included homages to Belgian surrealist painter René Magritte (2016-2021), Flemish painter Pieter Bruegel the Elder (2019-2023), and Aerosmurf (2018-2023). The second current Icon is Amare (designed in co-operation with music festival Tomorrowland). The third is Trident, the official aircraft of the male and female national football teams.
