Since the release of “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” trailer, we just can’t get enough—whether it’s the nostalgic music or the beautiful rendition and harmonizing of characters—old and new, we are pleased to announce something even more exciting.
On Wednesday, United Airlines announced that its teaming up with the Star Wars film franchise to add a “Star Wars-themed” plane to its fleet. The Star Wars-themed Boeing 737-800 will feature a paint design on the outside as well as a redesigned on-board experience.
Ah yes, the force is strong with this vessel and hopefully its entire crew!
“Approaching the design for United Airlines was unlike anything I had ever done before,” said Doug Chiang, vice-president and executive creative director for Lucasfilm. “I typically design for a flat screen when I design for films…an airplane fuselage presented a broad and exciting canvas.”
Chiang used the plane’s shape to his advantage—creating an image with a distinct sense of depth.
“We leveraged the curve of the fuselage to give the impression of three-dimensionality,” he added. The trilogy-original X-wing and TIE fighter in the design were placed on the broadest area of the aircraft’s fuselage, giving the illusion that ships are flying out of the aircraft, toward the viewer.
“The resulting illusion is one of false dimension, like a classical trompe l’oeil painting where the imagery seems to jump out of the canvas,” United Airlines described.
As passengers board the aircraft, they will of-course be greeted by Star Wars music, with headrests illustrating the Resistance or the First Order. Up and until the movie’s December premiere, United will be distributing commemorative pins to passengers to wear.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21hbvm69i4k
The Star Wars plane will be flying on North American, Central American, and Caribbean routes.
While not everyone will have the chance to see the new livery in person, anyone will be able to track United’s Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker-themed aircraft via special icon on FlightAware, the world’s largest online flight tracking platform.
For the first time, aviation and Star Wars enthusiasts can track past and future flights on both desktop and mobile by entering the plane’s tail number and the new livery will appear on FlightAware’s flight tracking maps as the X-Wing starship.
“United Airlines and the Star Wars franchise share a common goal: connect people and unite the world,” said Mark Krolick, United’s vice president of marketing. “We are thrilled to join forces and help promote the concluding chapter of the Skywalker story, while at the same time enlisting help from our new friends from the Star Wars universe to demonstrate the importance of safety for our customers and colleagues.“
Oh—and just wait for the in-flight safety video—probably the only one you will ever actually want to watch on your own volition—the new Star Wars-themed in-flight safety video will feature characters from the new film performing safety demonstrations.
May the Force Be With You Passenger…fly safely, you will.
