American AirlinesCopied

For more than four decades American's name was set the Vignelli way: AmericanAirlines as one run of Helvetica, the first word in red and the second in blue, beside the famous double A and eagle. Design Week noted the identity had been "developed by Massimo Vignelli in 1967."

On 17 January 2013 the airline unveiled "a new logo and exterior for its planes," created with FutureBrand. Chief executive Tom Horton called it "a new and updated look for the first time in more than 40 years." The name was cut to a single word, American, drawn in a softer custom sans in dark grey.

Beside it sits a new flight symbol. "Our new flight symbol, an updated eagle, incorporates the many icons that people have come to associate with American, including the 'A' and the star," said chief commercial officer Virasb Vahidi, adding that the core colours had been "updated to reflect a more vibrant and welcoming spirit." The tail gained bold red, white and blue stripes. New composite aircraft had to be painted, so the polished metal look gave way to silver mica paint to keep the "silver bird" heritage.

The release said the rollout would reach airports, aircraft interiors, uniforms and digital platforms, and The Drum reported that McCann Worldwide would follow with an advertising campaign.

Reaction was split. Design Week readers singled out the 3D effect, one calling the result "bland" and another saying the planes now looked "like a toothpaste tube." On X, news spread that the original logo designer disliked the redesign, and one person summed up the eagle's fate as "American Airlines Decapitates The Eagle In Its Brand New Logo," while another welcomed the change: "Its about damn time!"