KLM’s Boeing 777 – from blue to orange

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has introduced a unique orange-and-blue coloured Boeing 777-300, combining the Dutch national colour with the national flag.

The idea to have a plane in this special colour started with a social media post KLM published on King’s Day 2015. At the time, KLM’s followers were presented with a picture of an orange aircraft, along with the question: “Should we colour orange next year on King’s Day? #OrangeExperience”. 30,000 likes and 2,500 positive responses later, KLM rolls out its only orange aircraft today.

KLM will deploy the orange Boeing 777 on routine flights within the network and, whenever possible, during events that offer opportunities to promote the Netherlands. The aircraft will debut this summer and will be in operation on the Rio de Janeiro-Amsterdam route during the Olympic Games. On 22 August, KLM will use its orange Boeing to operate the “Medal Flight” that brings the Dutch Olympic heroes home.

The colours of the Dutch flag have been incorporated in the transition between orange and blue, completing the aircraft’s Dutch image. It took a team of 35 people four days to spray on the orange livery.

Image by Menno Mennes