
Quick Facts About the Air France Brand
Date of Inception: October 7, 1933
Headquarters:
Roissypôle, Tremblay-en-France, France, Charles de Gaulle Airport
Website: airfrance.com
Air France was established in 1933 and is a French airline that is a part of Air France-KLM. It operates flights both domestically and internationally. Airports in Nice, Lyon, and Paris serve as home bases for the airline. Hippocampe Aline also has its own flag and trademark in addition to the principal emblem.
Context and Origins

In a nutshell, what does Air France mean?
It’s been around since the early days of aviation, making it one of the world’s oldest airlines and a founding member of the SkyTeam alliance. Formerly France’s primary airline, it is now a subsidiary of the European holding company Air France-KLM.
The Hippocampus, a mythical creature that looks like a horse with wings and a fishtail, serves as the symbol. According to myth, the ancient gods used the quickest animals possible to pull their chariots. The nereids used it, too. He was selected as the face of Air France because he symbolises the concept of speed at its most extreme.
1933 – 1976

Hippocampe Aline was used prominently in the original corporate emblem of the French airline, which resembled a heraldic sign. In the middle of the white circle was a drawing of a winged horse with a fishtail. Those large, sweeping patterns on its wings are meant to evoke the motion of a waving flag. They inject energy and motion into the insignia. All of the components, including the bezel, have a deep blue hue.
1976 – 1990

Without a mythological beast to represent them, new brand icons entered the scene in 1976. The original square was replaced with a slightly slanted, elongated rectangle with many stripes, similar to a bar code. The words “Air France” appear in bold below it. Like our national flag, white, red, and blue are used.
1990 – 1998

A revised version of the logo’s appearance was unveiled by the designers in 1990. It has the same components as before, but the sizes and placements have been altered. A thin black line now appears behind a graphic sign that features the company’s name. They divide it from the right-bottom rectangle.
1998 – 2009

During this time, creatives crafted a new logo. The black line was eliminated, and the base component was widened to accommodate the design change. As a result, the strokes were brief and resembled parallelograms. “Air France” is printed in huge letters over a cluster of geometric shapes.
2009 – 2016

The typeface has been updated to be considerably more legible in this edition, with the letters now seeming thinner and more refined. Rather of a rectangle, there is now a thin red ribbon in the shape of a flat parallelepiped. In addition, there is a merger of two terms. Dark blue and crimson are the predominant hues.
2016 – today

In 2016, the logo’s colour scheme was lightened up a little, with the words “Air France” taking on a pastel hue.
Symbolic Typeface and Hue
Dark Slate Blue | Hex color: | #303c7c |
---|---|---|
RGB: | 48 60 124 | |
CMYK: | 61 52 0 51 | |
Pantone: | PMS 7687 C |
Pigment Red | Hex color: | #ec232d |
---|---|---|
RGB: | 235 35 45 | |
CMYK: | 0 85 81 7 | |
Pantone: | PMS Bright Red C |
Experts recommend using a larger version of the French airline’s official typeface, Excellence In Motion, for the logo. It’s also similar to fonts from earlier eras. In this category include fonts like Mr. Eaves Mod Heavy, LCT Picón Extended Extra Bold, Adrianna Extd ExtraBold, and Venn Extended XBold.
The national colours of the country to which Air France belongs—red, white, and blue—are prominent in the logo’s colour scheme. The three-color flag serves to highlight the country’s legal connection and historical roots.
Codes for Air France’s various colours
Can you identify Air France’s logo?
There’s a red ribbon in the shape of a curved parallelogram and the airline’s name in the logo. The energy of quick motion is represented by the upward-curving speedline.
Is Air France a publicly traded company?
It’s important to note that Air France is a privately held business. It is a public corporation since it allows its stock to be bought and sold.
What is the relationship between KLM and Air France?
When Air France and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines joined in 2004, the result was Air France-KLM. Air France is a subsidiary of the Franco-Dutch holding corporation Air France – KLM SA.
Who is the airline’s owner in France?
Several different people share ownership of Air France. The majority of the stake is owned by the Agence des Participations de l’État. Nearly 10% is held by China Eastern Airlines Corporation Limited, while the remainder is held by the Dutch State. Delta Air Lines owns 5.8 percent.