More room in your row with Virgin Atlantic....

A neat but under publicised extra from Virgin Atlantic: Virgin Atlantic Seat Plus in economy. Stretch out and take over the whole of your economy row for your family or just for yourself, from £60. It can offer a fully flat area to rest, at the fraction of the cost of a normal lie flat bed seat. Bookings for the service must be made either by telephone with either Virgin or your travel agent, or if you dare risk it at the last minute at the airport. However, with airlines keen to fill up all the seats as quickly as possible, book as early as you can. 

Letting the imagination run free.....

It is always an indulgence, as an aviation design enthusiast, to allow your imagination to run free and come up with some stylish ideas and designs. Ideas that you know will not come true, but nevertheless are pleasing to see on a piece of paper or computer screen. The Delta Northwest Virtual site does this very well - a mock up of what a combined Delta and Northwest airline company would look like. Delta Airlines merged with Northwest in 2008 which saw the loss of the iconic Northwest livery. But it is resurrected here once again in this combined design of the two airline giants. 

Why you should not let the CEO near the design drawing board.....

I was speaking to a very good friend of mine, a very senior branding consultant and we talked about the new United logo. We both agreed that if we had come up with the new logo, it is not something we would been proud to show potential new clients. Unfortunately it is a clumsy mish-mash of old and new: a huge loss to United's former glorious Tulip design, created by design supremo Saul Bass. 

In the same conversation, my friend talked to me about why CEO's should be allowed near the creative drawing board. He was of course referring to the very public announcement by Burberry's CEO, Angela Ahrendts, of her desire to see more creative CEO involvement in brands and products. And then I did some research and then I discovered why I profoundly disagree with him. CEO's, particularly in the aviation world, should not be allowed near the drawing board.

A cursory search reveals the history of the new United logo. It is of course the United typography, sitting next to the old Continental Airlines symbol. A simple solution to the diplomacy of a mega merger in order to satisfy shareholders and stakeholders of both companies. And who came up with it? The respective CEO's of both airlines, as an answer to their dilemma as to who was merging with who. But the victim is a new logo which now sits uncomfortably with the new company. Is it new, is it old, is it the same, but not the same? Whatever the answer I am afraid one thing is clear: it does not deserve a place in the history books of great aviation logos.

United, it is time for change.

UK Government Hijack? Willie Walsh 1. UK Government 0

The UK government has consistently proved itself a menace to developing a sustainable and sensible aviation policy. It should then have thought a little more carefully about trying to hijack the limelight during the launch of the new British Airways A380 service between Hong Kong-London.

Whitehall has long regarded UK airlines as simply tax collectors for its own coffers, rather than a catalyst of developing trade and relations between the British Isles and the rest of the world. And so it was with no hesitation that Willie Walsh, Chief Executive of International Airlines Group, was quick to shoot down the ridiculous claim that the British Secretary of State for Transport, Patrick McLoughlin, was in China to not only fly the flag but also take it back with him aboard the inaugural Hong Kong-London A380 service. Economical with the truth? Well yes, particularly as when the claim was made the plane had already left. And even more so because the UK Government has done nothing to support UK airlines. 

A victory for Willie Walsh? He is a modest and incredibly hard working Chief Executive and would not want any victory celebrated, merely noted. More then an own goal for the UK government.

A Collection of Commercial Aviation History

I have a love and fascination of Boeing's 747 aircraft. Old and new, their unique shape has an undeniable beauty they I can't quite put my finger on. I discovered a great model maker in Asia, capable of building bamboo wood made scale model aircraft. I have commissioned three so far, all from the Boeing 747 family: a Cathay Pacific 747-400, a Northwest Orient 747-200 and a British Caledonian 747-200. Unfortunately only one of the airlines remains today, Cathay Pacific. The other two were both bought out by larger airlines - British Caledonian (or BCal as it was popularly known) by British Airways and Northwest Orient (which latterly dropped Orient) by Delta.

And so a small tip of the hat in honour of all three great airlines....some images to follow of them.

The Launch of Plane Style

Hello. My name is Charlie, Charlie Baker, a commercial aviation journalist.

Like most of our globe trotting world, I have always had a fascination with commercial aviation. I have always been attracted by the allure and romance of the national airlines and although low cost airlines have changed the landscape of commercial aviation, I believe that both the legacy airlines and the new low cost airlines have as much to learn from each other.

I am still enchanted by the beauty and emotion behind the personality of each flag carrier and despite some monumental changes in the way they do business, and perhaps unfortunately the way they now deliver customer service too, I still believe there are some strong characteristics amongst international aviation.

My most enduring memory growing up a child, is being taken transatlantic, from London to New York, by my father, on an overnight 747 Continental Airlines service. I was nine years old and as I was swallowed up by a huge creaking brown leather Business Class seat, I fell in love with commercial aviation. Unfortunately, Continental has now disappeared from our skies and is part of the United Airlines Corporation although United's new CEO, Jeff Smisek, is the former CEO of Continental and so hopefully the spirit of Continental will remain alive in one way or another.

And here my story begins again, now some 25 years later, as a commercial aviation journalist, charting the things I come across that I like....and do not like.

Over & Out.