Croatia Airlines plans to unveil its new visual identity and livery on Thursday July 18. The new branding will be introduced with the arrival of its first Airbus A220-300 aircraft, which is currently in the paint shop. The carrier has remained tight-lipped on its new look, but an emphasis will be put on revamping the company’s logo as part of its new visual identity. The carrier’s initial logo was chosen in an international competition in 1993 and was designed by Vilim Vasata who in 1995 developed the current brand identity, while Ivana Ivanković, who serves as the company’s Head of Corporate Design, was responsible for the airline’s existing livery, which was adopted in 2004.
Croatia Airlines refreshed its look by slightly tweaking its livery in 2019. As part of the new design, the letters “Croatia” on the fuselage were made larger, making them more noticeable and recognisable. The Croatian checkerboard symbol, featured on the tail, was further extended down the body of the aircraft, while the blue underbelly became white. However, to this day, the airline’s entire fleet has not been painted in the new livery. The new visual identity will only be featured on the carrier’s incoming fleet of fifteen A220 jets, as the company will become a single-type operator. Aircraft currently utilised by the airline will be returned to their owners.
In 2021, Belgium’s national carrier Brussels Airlines revealed a new livery which bears an uncanny resemblance to that of Croatia Airlines. Commenting on its existing branding, Croatia Airlines said, “The design of our visual identity is recognisable both in Croatia and abroad and we are proud if it served as inspiration to other carriers with their own designs. It should be noted that in 2005 the company was the recipient of the international ReBrandTM award for our livery as judged by some of the world’s most respected experts in the field of design. In addition, in 2019 and 2020, the Croatia Airlines fleet was visually refreshed. The squares, as a recognisable symbol of Croatian national identity, were applied along the tail and the back of the fuselage while the size of the letters “CROATIA” were increased”.
